click.to/insanity
by E. Tsugoyaki
Summary: The other characters of Lain... details of the disturbed lives of the unmentioned.
1. Layer 1 : Scars

Thanks for reading Wired Insanity. This fanfiction is the brainchild of the members of the RPG, so about eleven people worked together to write it. For more information, please visit http://www.geocities.com/ctinsanity. We love comments about this a lot, so please do not hesitate to review! Please enjoy!  
  
This fanfic runs from PG to NC-17. Please read with caution.  
  
Again, thank you for reading.  
  
______  
  
  
  
At three AM, silence was what reigned over the Dark Mansion. In the immaculate darkness, the three people inside crossed the dreamworld.  
  
That until contralto scream cut through the prevailing silence, waking up Hime, who seemed to be torn away from a bad dream, judging for her expression.  
  
"What the hell was that? Nakita! Nakita, what happened?"  
  
Beside her, Nakita was sitting bolt upright. A contralto voice escaped his mouth "Bad dream... oh... damn..."  
  
"What is this voice of yours?"  
  
"Damn... I can't switch back to my normal voice..."  
  
"I had no idea you had THIS voice anyway... what bloody hell is that?"  
  
"Did I wake Kojirou?"  
  
"Seems not. Plus, he can sleep for days, depending on the situation. Now explain that scream of yours."  
  
"That's good... now... to answer your questions... it's simply training my larynx. And... bad dream... the night my brother disappeared..."  
  
"Your brother? You mean Tak?"  
  
Nakita nodded.  
  
"Want to talk about that for a while?"  
  
"Not really.. it's still too painful... I know it's ironic... a psychologist not wanting to talk about something..."  
  
"I can understand that... sometimes we're not ready to bring it up, right?"  
  
"Yeah..."  
  
"Don't think about that for now..." she hugged Nakita and pushed him down so they could sleep.  
  
As he lay back down, Nakita thought /I don't want to be stuck in this voice come morning.../  
  
***  
  
"I gotta phone Tak... "  
  
As soon as the words tumbled out... "Still stuck, Hime..."  
  
"Anything we can do about it?"  
  
"I keep quiet and you call Tak to remind him to report to the police."  
  
"Report... alright." she picked up the phone and dialed Nakita's number.  
  
... A groggy Takashi Iwakura answered on the fourth ring: "Yo?"  
  
"Hello, Tak? It's Hime. "  
  
"Hime? Wha' happened to Nakita?"  
  
"Nothing, he's just showering right now. He asked me to call and tell you to report to the police, or anything like it."  
  
"Ohhhkay... thanksh for the headshup... shee ya..."  
  
Tak hung up.  
  
"OK, I told him."  
  
"Thanks..." He coughed... coughed again...  
  
"How you get rid of it now?"  
  
Took a deep breath... "I don't... well whaddya know... my original voice's back."  
  
"Seems so. But you need some control over it... anyways, want breakfast?"  
  
"Hell yeah, whatcha got?" Nakita cycled through his original voice, the "stuck" contralto, another, higher contralto and finished with a tenor before dropping back to his original voice.  
  
"Weird..."  
  
"Kept my psychology classmates amused..."  
  
"Well, you didn't wake up any of them, I suppose."  
  
"Wasn't sure in which voice I'd answer the next question. Pissed the professors off no end... that alone made it worth the trouble."  
  
"Showoff." she answered playfully. "Anyway, let's hit the kitchen. I have no idea what we got, but you help yourself."  
  
Hime heard her own voice ask, "Fish slabs and vegetables do?"  
  
"Works. And yeah, I might start liking the little voice trick."  
  
"Work on it yourself."  
  
As they got into the kitchen a sleepy, kimono wrapped Kojirou greeted them.  
  
"Morning, Kojirou."  
  
"Hoe, Nakita. Hey, sis. Care to join me for breakfast?"  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"Well, the usual, Nakita. We got fish and squid slabs, vegetables, sake... suppose you can stand to start your day with sake... Kojirou, do we have milk?"  
  
"Yeaown, and coffee too, but I wouldn't drink the coffee cause I made it... and there are some gaijin breakfast stuff here, like corn flakes, toast... help yourself."  
  
"Okay... fish, vegetables and sake it is for me..."  
  
"Ahn... sake, alright... do you have work today?"  
  
"Nah... I'm just a consultant for the senior partners. My methods are too... unorthodox to be allowed to solo on mainstream patients."  
  
"Ahn, OK. I thought it wouldn't be nice if you went to work drunk. Well sake isn't that strong anyway."  
  
"What was that about unorthodox?"  
  
"The methods I used on Tak... they're applicable to non-CMI patients..."  
  
"CMI?"  
  
"What did you use on Tak?"  
  
"Cybernetic mental illness... combination of sensory deprivation, psychoactive drugs and plain ol' counseling..."  
  
"Sensory deprivation?"  
  
"Now THIS sounds interesting... keep going."  
  
"Think we can adapt it, Hime?"  
  
"Maybe."  
  
Nakita shook his head.  
  
"Anything wrong?"  
  
"I used it to treat CMI... not to turn someone on..."  
  
"Well, what are the effects?"  
  
"Temporary deepening of CMI... violent outbursts..."  
  
"Freaky... how does that help?"  
  
"Removes basic inhibition, allowing the basic hatred of humanity to be safely expressed."  
  
"Isn't that dangerous?"  
  
"Better than bottling the hatred up and waiting for it to explode."  
  
"Got it..."  
  
"Still, I wonder how Tak reacted."  
  
"Tied 4 inch thick steel bars into complicated pretzels."  
  
The siblings just nodded in response, forgetting the idea.  
  
"Now... we going to eat?"  
  
"You said it."  
  
Nakita fixed his breakfast, and dug in. The other two did the same, in a less starved fashion.  
  
Kojirou being the first to finish, he said the traditional gochisoosama before leaving for his bedroom.  
  
A little grin played across Nakita's face. Shifting his voice to match Hime's as well as he could, Nakita half-muttered: "Spend enough time in bed?"  
  
Kojirou turned back at what he thought was his sister voice. "What do you mean with that?" Nakita kept a perfectly straight face and replied in his own voice, "What does she mean with what?"  
  
"Sis just said something about me spending enough time in bed... didn't she?"  
  
"Dunno... you say anything, Hime?" The glint in Nakita's eyes asked Hime to play along.  
  
She looked awkwardly at Kojirou. "I didn't say anything."  
  
Kojirou scratched his eyes. "Yeah, so you didn't..."  
  
"I mean it!"  
  
"You must be hearing things... getting enough sleep?"  
  
"I guess so... I don't have to sleep much."  
  
Nakita slipped into his "doctor" mode... "Any... weird dreams or... stuff like that?"  
  
"Weird dreams... not really. Y'know, the usual..."  
  
"Kojirou, our usual is weird..."  
  
"Well... yeaown, it is."  
  
"OK... weird for you, then..."  
  
"No, you got it wrong. Normal for me, weird for others."  
  
"Feverish nightmares, asleep and awake." Hime helped.  
  
"So nothing unusual in the dreams department?"  
  
"Nothing. And I've been sleeping quite a lot, also."  
  
"That unusual for you?"  
  
"A bit."  
  
"As you know, Nakita, we can stay open all night long here."  
  
"Speaking of which, is Kannai coming in this week?"  
  
"I think. He said he'd be here, tomorrow or Saturday."  
  
"Why you ask?"  
  
"Every night he's available.... I get double the amount of referrals from here. I need to know so I can clear my schedule."  
  
"Ah... oh damn... ahn, nee-chan?"  
  
"Don't even look at me. That kid's too unpredictable." after some pondering, she added "But I don't recall anyone complaining about him, actually."  
  
"His clients say he's a subzero sadist... but that's what lights their fires... bisexual to boot..."  
  
"Subzero... the word kinda fits him."  
  
"He's quite a pain machine."  
  
"Yeah? Sounds like the standard sadist... gets off on hurting people..."  
  
"Yeah, but that doesn't really describe Kannai."  
  
"We can't see if he's really excited. But..."  
  
"Judging from how well he does it, he must like."  
  
"Why don't you tape him and check his crotch out?"  
  
The proposition quite startled the two.  
  
"Well... we could..." Hime started, which Kojirou ended "but it's really anti ethical."  
  
"Just tape two sessions... then after you've answered the question... remove the concealed camera, and destroy it and the tapes."  
  
"Maybe he doesn't want us to find out."  
  
"And part of the canon here is that everything must be consensual."  
  
"Or... ask him... he might want to analyze how he performed."  
  
"Yeah, that works. We can ask him, if he agrees than it's done."  
  
"Ah, by the way, sorry if he's causing you trouble." Kojirou said in a tone Nakita couldn't identify as polite or sarcastic.  
  
"No trouble... he's just increasing the size of Hime's bill."  
  
"Excuse me? My bill?"  
  
"It's on firm time using firm resources."  
  
"Ahn, explain this better."  
  
"Well... the people that the Mansion refers to me are... talked to... at the firm's offices on the firm's time..."  
  
"Explain literally." Kojirou helped.  
  
"I can't talk to them for free."  
  
"OK, I'm not following. Yeah, we do refer people to you, and sure enough you won't talk to them for free, but... where does 'my bill' fit all that?"  
  
"As of now... eighty accumulated hours at two hundred US dollars per hour... is owing to the firm."  
  
"But why are you supposed to charge us?"  
  
"And not the people who go there? We won't take responsibility for that."  
  
"You got their names filed?"  
  
"In a way... they've already paid for it... Kannai charges... six, seven hundred US per hour?"  
  
"Yeah, about that... sometimes depends on who's involved."  
  
"And he personally gets around thirty percent of that?"  
  
"Thirty five, that's what his contract says. Varies."  
  
"OK... so it costs around 220 US an hour to the Mansion in direct labor... and indirect costs?"  
  
"Like what?"  
  
"Rooms, equipment, insurance, etc..."  
  
"Say that comes out to another hundred... therefore Kannai makes you 320 US an hour in gross profit."  
  
"We don't know the numbers exactly."  
  
"They're filed in Hime's computer."  
  
"I was working with rough figures."  
  
"Or... amortize the cost among all of the Mansion's employees."  
  
"Nah, not that."  
  
"Not much fair. And for what you're saying we don't have to do anything, right? Or I missed something here?"  
  
"Well... the Mansion refers clients to me as an SM-positive psychologist, correct?"  
  
"Precisely."  
  
"Therefore, in my professional capacity, I am providing a service to the referred clients?"  
  
"Yeah, keep going..."  
  
"Since the firm is providing the service, should it not be compensated for it?"  
  
"Uh-huh..."  
  
"Hime, you discuss that with Nakita, I'll hit the bed, alright?"  
  
"Kojirou, that's really not the behavior for the Mansion's future owner."  
  
Kojirou sighed in response. "I'm sorry, but not this time."  
  
Nakita let the exchange pass without comment.  
  
"This time, alright. Feverish dreams."  
  
"Thanks."  
  
Hime turned to Nakita, waiting for him to finish his chain of thought.  
  
"Or... track the hours that each employee generates... charge that against their gross profit. We track both ends... from the Mansion and from the firm..."  
  
"Yeah, that we could do."  
  
"Hours that can be specifically charged to an employee are done so... the others are spread across all employees."  
  
"Can you access the firm's files from here?"  
  
"To give you some round numbers to work with... the employees are Kannai, your sexy self, Dom A, Sub B and Switch C. Forty hours have been referred... and no, I cannot..."  
  
"Forty hours... bloody hell. You have an idea when this started?"  
  
"It's just an example... let me continue... ten hours cannot be directly attributed, so 2 hours are charged against each employee's gross margin. Kannai has generated fifteen of the remainder, so another 15 hours are charged against his gross margin. You generated five, so five hours are charged against your gross margin.... the dom has generated 3... three hours charged against his margin... the sub and switch have generated 3 and a half hours each, so that's what's charged against their margins."  
  
"I do understand, but... it doesn't sound fair. Later you tell me the people's names, that works better. Won't charge my employees with something that isn't their responsibility, ne?"  
  
"In a way, it is their responsibility... and I have client doctor privilege to maintain."  
  
Hime shook her head "No, it's not. I can understand that you have their privacy to keep and all, but if they can't handle what they start, that's not Kannai or anyone else's fault."  
  
"True... and they are out to me.... but I can't record any real info at the firm..."  
  
"Something has to be done... and, damn, I'm in the dark as for what."  
  
"For the moment, pay the aggregate charge..."  
  
"Have an idea how much it is?"  
  
"Eighty hours at two hundred US an hour... 16 thousand US dollars."  
  
"Bloody hell. I wonder how it came to this point."  
  
"The senior partners kicked up."  
  
"Hm?"  
  
"If this account wasn't paid, I would lose their professional support, especially with the CMI treatments."  
  
"Sigh... yeah, that we don't want to happen. Well, we are gonna pay... might take a while, though."  
  
"They want it within thirty days. That's the best I could plead for."  
  
Hime rested her head against her right hand, lost in thought. "Thirty days... well... alright. You can trust me to handle this."  
  
"It's the best I could get... how much could you pay today?"  
  
"I don't know... right now, maybe... one fifth of everything."  
  
"Great... that'll get them off my back... and yours..."  
  
"Wonderful. I'll be right back." with that the maiden stood up and went for her bedroom.  
  
A few minutes later, she returned with a NAVI in her hands. "You remember the firm's account number?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"KK, I'm transferring then. 16 thousand, one fifth... that's ... 32 hundred, right? Yeaown, give me the number and I'll send the money to them."  
  
Nakita gave her the number and in seconds the transfer was done. "They'll send them a confirmation of that. And I do think I can get the rest in thirty days."  
  
"Great..."  
  
Hime nodded in response. "You finished your breakfast?"  
  
Nakita looked down at the remains... "Yeah..."  
  
She got his plate and took it to the sink. "I'm gonna take a cold bath. Want to come along?"  
  
"Yeah... sounds like a good idea."  
  
"Wonderful. Let's go." without waiting for an answer Hime grabbed Nakita's hand and lead him upstairs. Nakita followed... having learned to expect the unexpected... "I hope the bath is just filled with water..."  
  
"This time, yes." Hime answered with a malicious grin.  
  
Nakita wasn't reassured until Hime opened the bathroom door for him. "See? Water."  
  
Nakita checked it... sniffed it... seemed like water... but... we are dealing with Hime here...  
  
Hime tapped her foot on the floor. "Nakita, get your hot ass inside, will you? What are you worried about anyway?"  
  
Nakita let that one pass... he shucked his clothes, barely realizing when Hime slipped out of her nightgown. "Now, then... are you coming?" Not waiting for an answer, the maiden stepped inside the cold water, pulling Nakita by the shoulders with her.  
  
The cold water sent a thrill through Nakita... he had an incongruous thought...  
  
/Tak would cause a tidal wave... like the time Tak did a bomb from the five meter platform... water absolutely everywhere...  
  
That thought didn't pass unnoticed by Hime, as she was looking directly into his eyes. Noticing his zoned out face, she invited him "A kiss for your thoughts, Nakita. And they better be the same as mine."  
  
"Nah... just remembering when Tak did a bomb dive from the five meter platform..."  
  
"Too bad, you get no kiss... ... ah, what the hell." barely saying that Hime crawled closer to Nakita, sitting on his lap. She turned her head backwards and locked her lips against his.  
  
Nakita returned the kiss, having nothing better to do... or so he thought as she took his hands and placed them over her breasts.  
  
Keeping the hands in place... Nakita shrugged and started slowly kneading, which he knew was eliciting moans from Hime, but these were muffled as she hadn't yet broken the kiss. Nakita interspersed nipple flicks delivered by his thumbs with the kneading, to the point that Hime couldn't stand it anymore. She took Nakita's left hand down to her thighs, while rolling her hips and adding her own hands to his. She finally broke the kiss, and her pleasure became more evident as her moans escaped her.  
  
Nakita wasn't out of breath... "Enjoy that?"  
  
Hime's answer first came in the form of a long, low moan. When it ended, she turned to face him, and, receiving Nakita's manhood in her, let out a sibilating "yessssss", which Nakita took as the answer to his question. He kept up the work with his hands.... and silenced the moan by kissing Hime again, which might have been a mistake by him, since now that she couldn't express her pleasure with moaning anymore, Hime hugged him and buried her fingernails into Nakita's back. She didn't mean to, but ended up drawing blood. Tak had caused worse injuries during their sparring bouts... so Nakita shrugged it off... and pinched... hard... once again Hime broke their kiss, this time jerking her head back and letting out a short, but loud yelp. When she opened her eyes again, everything seemed blurry...  
  
"If I'm going too far... you can always safeword..."  
  
"Mostly... mmmm... you're not... ahn... aaaahnnn... if ever.... *pant*... *pant*..."  
  
Nakita squeezed again and twisted the nipples outwards...  
  
"Yes... ahhh... keep on doing it... mmmmmm..." Hime grabbed Nakita's head and pulled his face against her breasts. Her whole body shook, far beyond her control.  
  
Indulging his sadistic tendencies... Nakita stopped all stimulation... and placed his hands around Hime's throat and ... gently ... ever so gently... squeezed...  
  
She wasn't running out of breath just yet, and kept on grinding herself against him, even with the slight frustration of Nakita stopping. In a matter of seconds, though, she was starting to run out... as Hime ran out of breath, Nakita stopped the squeeze.. and kept the hands there anyway...  
  
A close look would have been able to notice Hime's slight smile... she closed her eyes again with her irresistible "kiss me" face. Nakita kept one hand supporting Hime's neck.... the other snaked to her engorged clitoris... and pinched that for good measure, breaking the "kiss me" face as her as eyes opened wide. Her lips burned for Nakita, but she didn't mind. Every touch in her clitoris sent spasms through her body, and soon she was adapted to that, and moaning loudly as the waves of pleasure swept her.  
  
Nakita stopped that... lowered Hime's face to his to silence the moans... she guessed it as her time to play hard to get... or something along these lines. Instead of kissing his lips again, she snaked her face down to Nakita's neck, licking and sucking it restlessly. But not for long as the hand at her neck squeezed... dragging the pair's mouths together...  
  
Who says she didn't enjoy being submissive? She accepted Nakita's violent kiss, and stretched her hands out to play with his nipples. Nakita let up on Hime's clitoris... then squeezed with all the power his right hand could generate....  
  
That' was some kind of unnatural impact for Hime, meaning one she wasn't much adapted to just yet. Yet she didn't say a word, she kept on kissing Nakita and started again rocking her hips. Finally... he let himself go... not before moving his hands so they didn't threaten Hime's life. Nakita's hands around Hime's shoulders convulsed in time with his body and through acquired timing, hers. Maybe the only difference at that moment was that Hime seemed to make a point to scream her heart out.  
  
***  
  
Maybe because of her more delicate body, but Hime was still swept when Nakita got up from the bath. She groaned something and gestured for him to go, cause she'd be out shortly. Nakita climbed out, lifting Hime with him... he toweled the pair of them dry...  
  
By the time he'd finished, Hime was more on the awake side. Yet, she let her body fall on his, smiling at Nakita. He shrugged back into his clothes... Hime's weight was easily carried.  
  
Nakita kissed her. "Y'know... I've found the perfect guy to test out restraints and fittings..."  
  
Hime's eyes focused on Nakita, while her ears seemed to twitch like a cat's. "Keep on talking..."  
  
"Yeah.. Tak. Not gonna find many people stronger or heavier than him..."  
  
"True, but... is he willing?"  
  
"Don't know... haven't asked him... but... compensate him for his time and any injury he does himself..."  
  
"Seems to work, but, again, you know the canon here. Part of it says that everything must be consensual, and everyone involved, fully aware of it."  
  
"Put him down as a structural testing contractor. And make plans to rebuild tested rooms that don't come up to scratch."  
  
"You just hit the nail here... what if he thrashes the rooms he tests?"  
  
"They ain't strong enough... you rebuild and strengthen them at your expense."  
  
"Yeaown, that makes sense... not always doable, but reasonable still."  
  
"If Tak can't cause restraints and fittings to fail... your average customer doesn't stand a chance..."  
  
"Yeah, I know... if he can, odds are that my regular customers can't anyway, but yeaown, I like the idea, and I have to try it, right? So, you ask him. If he's willing, we might put him to test the rooms."  
  
Nakita found the phone and gave his brother a buzz... yes... Tak was interested... yes... Tak was doing sweet foxtrot alpha at the moment... hell yes... Tak is on his way....  
  
"He's coming..."  
  
"Ah, so he wants to do it... good, good!"  
  
***  
  
"Kojirou, can you see who it is?"  
  
"Yeah... I had enough sleep already..." the boy went to the kitchen, and looking down he saw a huge body with fluoro green hair on top. "Nakita, there's a huge green haired guy out there... related to you?"  
  
As they talked, the door rattled in its frame...  
  
"Yes... let him in before you need a new door..."  
  
Tak's knocking was a heavy rhythmic pounding delivered with his right hand.  
  
"Alright, calm down!" Kojirou pressed the intercom button, unlocking the door. A few more thumps would have rendered the intercom buzzer redundant. "Come in."  
  
***  
  
The wooden gates were open as he drove up on his Vespa. As he stepped in, it seemed as he was stepping back into a time past. Blue eyes scanned the landscaping. Layers upon layers of green greeted his eyes and the sounds of a soft backyard waterfall hit his ears. Suddenly, the serenity of the scene was broken by the loud laughs of teenage girls.  
  
Adam Langley carefully stepped on the round stones that guided his way to the shoji screen door. On the wooden front porch, he reached and grabbed a silk rope which aided in ringing a large bell. The hollow ringing was sorrowful.  
  
He looked down as the screen slid open slightly to reveal the face of a short Asian girl.  
  
"Oh... I'm sorry, I thought this was the Tsugoyaki residence." Adam said in English, as his Japanese was less than perfect.  
  
The girl smiled blankly at his statement then a twinkle of recognition shone in her eyes.  
  
"Tsugoyaki! Tsu..." she stopped as she slid open the door.  
  
Standing in a room about twenty feet away was a short girl. She was near a small glass table. Her auburn hair fell down to her mid-back, a mixture of soft waves and curls. Her back was to him, but he could see that she was clad in a kimono. She turned, her hair lifting slightly off of her back, to look at him with dark eyes.  
  
"Caomei, this is Adam Langley." she said in soft, articulate Japanese.  
  
Adam walked to the room to shake her hand, but stopped when he looked out past the room. Beyond the room was another room composed entirely of glass with water running over it and below it. Waterfalls fell all around the room. Beautiful mist rose from the yard below. His awe was interrupted by a cold hand on his shoulder.  
  
"You failed to remove your shoes, Mr. Langley," Eiri said, flicking a curl behind her shoulder. "That's not very polite."  
  
"Sorry, I'm not... used to that custom."  
  
She paused to look up at his face, which was a good eight inches above her own. The hand lifted from his shoulder and pointed to a short set of stairs heading to some unknown room.  
  
"Your room is up there. Breakfast is at 7:00, I expect that you shall be down here by then. Caomei will be with us as her mother is out of town. She will be sleeping in the extra futon in my room, so she will not bother you. She does not know English, so don't expect any responses from her unless you speak in Japanese or Chinese," she looked down at the floor. "Perhaps we will get to know each other better."  
  
"I do hope so, Miss Tsugoyaki." he said, taking her hand and kissing it lightly. Her face turned pink and she looked away from him.  
  
Adam walked away from her and up the stairs. When he reached the top, he walked into the small room and dumped out a bag of files about Eiri...  
  
"He's cute." Caomei said, giggling.  
  
"That he is," Eiri said, laughing and then snorting.  
  
"I see good things in your future with him!"  
  
"Funny, Caomei."  
  
Caomei grabbed a chunk of curls and started dragging Eiri to the kitchen, deciding it was time to prepare breakfast for the new arrival.  
  
***  
  
After the phone call from Nakita via Hime, Tak slammed the phone down as was his wont.  
  
The apartment the brothers shared was a perennial low branch problem for Tak - it was built for average size Japanese people... and Tak was most definitely NOT average size.  
  
Standing slightly above 220 centimeters and tipping the scales just short of 200 kilograms, Tak was barely a month past his sixteenth birthday. No one ever believed that at a first meeting.  
  
After two intersections with low doorways, Tak made it to the bathroom and stooped to look in the mirror. As usual, his fluoro green mop was a stubborn mess that resisted any and all attempts to reform it - Tak had long since given up on that project. He had never suffered much in the way of acne - just a zit here or there.  
  
/ Now for the shower... / Due to his size and the lack of size of the shower stall, Tak washed his body by sections.  
  
When he was sitting down in the shower, letting the water rinse the soap off his torso... the voices returned...  
  
...why do you persist in remaining ? ...  
  
/ Not a fuckin' gain... / Although Tak didn't know it... the voices had become more frequent since the suicide of one Yomoda Chisa.  
  
...why do you remain while we are rootless? ...  
  
/ Shut the fuck up. I survived because I WANTED to. /  
  
... you managed to escape your body? Why did you make it only temporary ? ...  
  
/ SHUT THE FUCK UP! I SURVIVED, YOU DIDN'T! YOU'RE DEAD, SO ACT LIKE IT! /  
  
...yet you cannot remain entirely. You have to make brief periodic returns, or retreat from consensual reality completely...  
  
/ I bodydump because I damn well want to, not have to. /  
  
...but how can you do it without any connection to the Wired? ...  
  
/ Satellite uplink. /  
  
...is that the real, whole truth? ....  
  
The voices they have pissed off.  
  
/ Too fuckin' weird... what in the fuck WAS that thing ten years ago? /  
  
Tak finished rinsing himself and cautiously got out of the shower. After dressing, he powered up the NAVIs mounted in his forearms to check his mail.  
  
"Any mail?"  
  
"Fuck all, dipwad."  
  
That was the major benefits of the forearm NAVIs - they were portable, could connect from anywhere and ran off the bioelectricity generated by the user. Tak had programmed his to be insulting. Absolute sons of bitches to upgrade, though.  
  
After fueling his huge frame, Tak had nothing to do, as per usual. Surfing the Wired was boring, working out mindlessly repetitive. On paper, not going to school or having a job looked great, but palled after time.  
  
So he called an escort agency, hiring the services of a lady named Ichiko for an hour.  
  
***  
  
Like it always was with escorts, sex was cold, passionless, mechanical and barely satisfying. It worked off some energy - that was about it.  
  
Locking the apartment up, Tak went for a fifteen mile run to help pass time and burn calories.  
  
Twenty minutes after he got back, his brother called.  
  
***  
  
Adam looked at the girls with an almost morbid fasination. They stood in the entry hall, laughing about some joke that Adam only understood two words of. Adam focused his vision on the ends of the soft pleated skirts, perhaps hoping for a peek at the lacy thong that Eiri wore. He grinned, and unfortunately that was the moment that Eiri and Caomei decided to look up to say their good-byes.  
  
After a shoe had flown through the air and slammed him in the face [and Eiri had retrieved her beloved shoe...], the girls stormed out, leaving a dazed Adam sitting at the top of the stairs rubbing his face. Eiri locked the wooden gate, and after admiring the black Vespa, she ran to catch up with her friend.  
  
As they had missed both the bus and train to school, the girls decided to walk to school. Their walk led them through both downtown and the more suburby places. Both girls stopped to stare at the Dark Mansion, admiring it from across the street, and fearing the green- haired man who was pounding the door. When he was let in finally, they felt that they could speak safely.  
  
"I've heard that there's a woman in there who beats all others in beauty." whispered Caomei in awe.  
  
"Really? I've heard that really odd things happen in there at night." Eiri said dryly.  
  
"Oh really... odd things happen at a place that revolves around S&M. Who knew?" Caomei mentioned sarcastically.  
  
Eiri shot daggers at her friend, then looked at her watch.  
  
"We better get going, or we're going to be late to school!" said Eiri urgently.  
  
Both paused to look at the building one last time before starting the sprint to school. The tapping of their shoes echoed off the buildings before mixing with the sound of passing traffic on a nearby road. 


	2. Layer 2 : Continuations

Tak had to duck but didn't... provoking a stream of coarse language... At the second attempt... he made it in....  
  
"Hoe... I suppose you're Takashi, right? I'm Kojirou, Hime's brother." Kojirou greeted him with a slight bow.  
  
"You were expecting the tooth fairy?" The sarcasm was almost lost amid a deep, rumbling bass voice, partly infrasonic.  
  
The newcomer towered over Kojirou, being nearly twice as tall... literally. His body took the definition of "heavyset" and ran with it. There was a definite resemblance to Nakita... the eyes and hair were the same.  
  
Kojirou looked up at Tak's eyes, grinning. "Well, yeah. But you'll do. Come on." he guided Tak through a maze of dark corridors with heavy metal doors, finally stopping at one which he opened easily. "Heh... they did choose wisely calling you, I see... well, Hime and Nakita are in there. I'll be with you soon."  
  
Tak had to duck as he entered... muttering something about a low bridge.  
  
From the inside, Hime and Nakita awaited him.  
  
"Hoe, Tak..." Hime greeted him with a smile "Thanks for accepting it."  
  
"This... is my younger brother..." Nakita indicated the towering green haired giant who had just entered.  
  
"Younger... kinda hard to believe... you're not really 16, are you?"  
  
Hime received a flat stare from Tak. "I am."  
  
Nakita whispered to her, "He entered puberty precociously... at age 6... ten years ago..."  
  
Hime's eyes widened heavily... "Alright, if you say... K, shall we start?" a quick thought crossed her mind, which caused her to frown barely visibly.  
  
"What do I break first?"  
  
"That's... pretty much the idea..." by the time she finished the sentence, Kojirou had arrived from seemingly nowhere in the room.  
  
"Hoe, are we getting to it already?"  
  
"Yeaown, you got here just in time."  
  
"How much pressure you want applied? Just my bodyweight to start with?"  
  
"That's the idea. Actually your bodyweight seems more than enough." Hime gestured for everyone to go through the door Tak had entered from, and lead the group to what seemed like a huge basement with chains tied to the ceiling, forming a sort of net.  
  
"Nice place... so we start with 200 kilos and work up from there?"  
  
"Pretty much. You see, each eight chains are supposed to hold a person. So, just let loose. No need to struggle." she pressed a button on the wall and the chains lowered. Walking up to one particular set of them, she motioned for Tak to lie down on them.  
  
Tak flopped onto the chains... they didn't impede his floorward motion, which caused a collective wince.  
  
"Nakita, I start to have doubts about this idea..."  
  
"You said it, Kojirou." Hime answered  
  
He wriggled out of the mess and jumped back to his feet.  
  
"Well... he is testing it..." Nakita noted, seemingly unaffected.  
  
"He is... but, damn... things might get a bit out of hand here..."  
  
"Maybe we only test three or four fittings per time?"  
  
"Yeah, that works."  
  
"Ah, Tak... can you come with us, please?" again a walk through the corridors, now to a place with thick cuffs on the walls. Also, nails covered a fair part of the floor. Tak raised an eyebrow after he ducked in...  
  
"Well, for this one, first your weight, if it resists, you try to break free, alright?" Hime took Tak by his hand and quickly tied his to wrists and ankles to the wall.  
  
"Let's hope he doesn't break the wall..."  
  
"OK..."  
  
He let his weight hang from the cuffs... they gave a little but held...  
  
"They're loosening... you don't need to struggle. Kojirou, are you writing down?"  
  
"Yeaown. Nets, cuffs... what's next?"  
  
Before Hime could release Tak, the cuffs gave way in a shower of debris and curses.  
  
"Ow, damn... K, next room... Tak, whenever you want to stop, say it, alright?"  
  
"What's next, sis?"  
  
"Hmmmm... mind if we hang you, Tak?"  
  
"Hang?"  
  
"Yeah. Pierce your skin with hooks and hang you from chains."  
  
"Nix that... they'd probably rip out."  
  
"That's what I fear..."  
  
"Ahn... am I the only one here who thinks Tak might thrash the whole place if we keep going?" Kojirou intervened  
  
"You could remove the hooks and let me pull down on the chains with my right hand..."  
  
"Works... alright, good idea."  
  
Kojirou had to suppress any comment.  
  
As they go to the room, it was obvious the chains were a lot thicker than the previous ones. "Well, just try it." Both siblings already feared the worst, though.  
  
Tak grabbed a chain with his right hand... wrapped a loop around his hand to get a better grip... and yanked down.... the chains held....  
  
"OK if I use my strong hand now?"  
  
"Hmmmm..." Hime's awkwardness was more than evident. "What do you say, Nakita? You know the Mansion, and Tak well enough."  
  
"Well... not going to get many customers heavier than 600 pounds..."  
  
"If any..." was Kojirou's muttered response.  
  
"Well, you don't need to, Tak. Let's get going."  
  
"Hime, are you thinking about the same room as I am?"  
  
"Yes, if you're thinking about the voodoo rooms."  
  
Tak raised an eyebrow. "Voodoo rooms?"  
  
"In them, we nail you to the ground. And there's no other way of testing it than taking them. Is that alright with you?"  
  
Tak glared at his brother, who nervously started inching away...  
  
"Hey, that's why I said... you wanna stop, just say it. That hurts like hell."  
  
Tak didn't hear what was said... instead... he lunged for his brother with surprising speed. Nakita became a blur as he dodged out of the way... grabbed his pissed off brother... flipped him to the ground with a resounding CRASH...  
  
"Oh, damn..."  
  
"Kojirou, get a Raiya. No, get two of them."  
  
"My thoughts exactly." he disappeared into a wall, coming back seconds later with what looked like a metal whip. As he came back, though, Nakita warned, "No need... he's unconscious."  
  
"Good... and the floor looks like a plane crashed on it..."  
  
Nakita shrugged, "What do you expect when 430 pounds is dropped from 6 feet?"  
  
"Heck... what when he wakes up?"  
  
"Nakita, do you think you can carry him out?"  
  
"No..."  
  
"Fine, what now? We wait for him to wake up?"  
  
This time Kojirou had to say it. "No, no... Tak'll be enraged... and I don't wanna be near him when that happens."  
  
"We could wait... or run..."  
  
"Run? You're kidding, right? He'll thrash the whole place."  
  
"Well... watch him."  
  
"Watch?"  
  
"Yeah..."  
  
"What is that supposed to mean?"  
  
"Keep an eye on Tak."  
  
"And?"  
  
"Gimme a yell if he wakes up"  
  
Kojirou shook his head "You're so kidding..."  
  
"Nakita, you wait here with us. Kojirou, you snag a Raiya around his shoulder, while I get the other."  
  
"I'll go get the sedative..." Without waiting for further response, Nakita left the room.  
  
"Wait, Nakita! Hoe... ah, damn... what now, sis?"  
  
"Now we wait... not much more to do."  
  
Suppressing any external indication, Tak woke up short before Nakita left... the cold feel of the Raiyas on his shoulders... looks like the rage had boiled over again... at the same time, a scan line ran down the length of Tak's body...  
  
"Hoe, NAKITA! HE'S AWAKE!"  
  
"AND PISSED!"  
  
The scan completed... A quicker horizontal scan... Tak flickered... and got up... free of the Raiyas...  
  
"Ah, damn... NAKITA!"  
  
"HELL, ARE YOU LISTENING?"  
  
They didn't wait for an answer, running out of the room and trying to lock Tak inside...  
  
Tak actually looked a little bewildered... the shouts brought Nakita running...  
  
"Great... your little brother is awake inside there. What you brought?"  
  
"How did he wake up?  
  
"Hm... he did."  
  
"What else you want to know?"  
  
"Any funny visual FX?"  
  
"This... hm... line thing across his body."  
  
"Hoe, I thought I was seeing things..."  
  
Nakita shook his head...  
  
"What is that?"  
  
"Some guys I worked with at uni... reckoned it was theoretically possible to manipulate the Wired directly..."  
  
"Keep going..."  
  
"After a strong shock to the user's psyche... such as being comatose or insane..."  
  
"What happens?"  
  
"What is called a bodydump... the user translates themselves to the Wired without help..."  
  
"OK... where are you trying to get?"  
  
"Said help being connection and NAVI..."  
  
"Fine, Nakita... but what's with Tak?"  
  
"Is he crossing the Wired right now?"  
  
"Nope... just standing there looking very bewildered..."  
  
The siblings rolled their eyes, following with an unison "Soooooo..."  
  
"Looks like a flashdump..."  
  
"Meeeeaning?"  
  
"He hit the Wired for a few milliseconds, then returned..."  
  
"Ah, K..."  
  
"Hmmm... is he still angry?"  
  
"Doesn't look it.... but people said the Titanic was unsinkable..."  
  
"You face the beast, then."  
  
The color drained from Nakita's face. "Shit... full dump..."  
  
"Hm?"  
  
"He's no longer in the room..."  
  
"EEH??" Kojirou and Hime seemingly teleported to inside the room. And Tak actually wasn't there.  
  
"Nakita, let me see if I'm following..."  
  
"If we are following. Tak had just suffered a bodydump..."  
  
"And is cruising the Wired physically..."  
  
"But why?"  
  
"I have no idea..."  
  
"Alright... how long does it usually take?"  
  
"Varies each time... he may not dump back here..."  
  
"So, there's no telling when, where and IF he's coming back..."  
  
"Just wonderful..."  
  
"And he's gotta report to the cops day after tomorrow..."  
  
"Ahn... about?"  
  
"Condition of the visa."  
  
"Ah, Oc... damn."  
  
"He's in Japan illegally?"  
  
Nakita shook his head. "No... we entered legally, being dual nationals."  
  
"Ah, K then."  
  
"But what's the matter?"  
  
"Does the Wired respect national bounds?"  
  
"Not that I know."  
  
"Well... theoretically... he could come out anywhere that is near a high bandwidth connection."  
  
"Bloody hell..."  
  
"That happened before?"  
  
"A few times..."  
  
"International level?"  
  
"Yes..."  
  
"How you managed to locate him?"  
  
"Tak called.... had ended up in Vancouver..."  
  
Hime suppressed a giggle, while Kojirou didn't bother.  
  
"Don't laugh... I had to cut a week of classes to go find him."  
  
"I suppose so... but it's funny anyway. Well, guess the test session is over..." Hime couldn't help muttering a "fortunately" ... "We just wait now?"  
  
Nakita just nodded, shoulders sagging in defeat.  
  
Kojirou thought for a couple of seconds, "Hmmm... you wait, right? I mean, I'm more than a little late for school... and I kinda have to go. Nee-chan IS paying, after all." as was his way, Kojirou didn't wait for an answer. He disappeared into a wall, carrying the Raiyas with him.  
  
"Are you waiting for Tak here?" Hime asked Nakita as Kojirou left.  
  
Nakita thought /I wonder if I should give Yasuo a buzz.../ "No real need... we might as well clean up the aftereffects."  
  
"Good idea..." /That wall will need some work.../ "Alright, thanks for helping."  
  
"Glad to..."  
  
"Heh... NOW I wish Tak was here... anyway, let's get to it."  
  
"That's one man you NEVER treat like a pack mule."  
  
"That's not really what I meant... but thanks for the advice."  
  
The pair started cleaning up the debris caused by Tak's "structural contracting" work. As they were finished, Hime looked a bit sadly at them "Nakita, remind me to separate a room just to put what Tak breaks..."  
  
"What do you expect from a guy who can break the super heavyweight clean & jerk weightlifting world record with his weak arm?"  
  
"I know, I've seen it... but it's... horrible, anyway."  
  
"I've been trying to persuade him to compete... but Tak doesn't want to... for obvious reasons related to bodily integrity, I didn't press it."  
  
Hime laughed at that, then added, "It'd be no fun for him anyway..."  
  
"No competition when he shatters the world mark with a lift of triple the old score."  
  
"And they'd much likely think he was cheating. Which could lead to some serious damage."  
  
"A series of medical observations could establish a baseline for him.... regular observations over at least a year to establish baseline levels of testosterone, HGH, adrenaline, etc etc."  
  
"Hell... Tak probably produces enough testosterone that some can be extracted, refined and sold without bothering him."  
  
Hime grinned widely. "Well I wouldn't suggest that..."  
  
"As well as other hormones... human growth hormone being an example."  
  
"You could try an convince him, like, 'You know, Tak, since you got much more hormones than you'd need... and too much money is never enough...' "  
  
"Yeah... y'know..."  
  
"For a kid that entered puberty at six, he could much well stop it already."  
  
"Well... if you or Kojirou wants to bulk up, you won't have to buy HGH at retail..."  
  
"True... though I prefer my form as it is... and I know you prefer it too." Hime answered with a wink.  
  
Nakita responded to that by easily scooping Hime up and kissing her. An eternity later, Hime broke the kiss. She looked up at Nakita's eyes, smiling happily. "See?"  
  
"It was just a suggestion."  
  
"I know."  
  
"So, now that we're finished, what are you up to?"  
  
"Probably have to go in... rearrange my appointments..."  
  
"I see. Just asking because I have nothing to do."  
  
"Well.. I have to get ready for Kannai's after effects... maybe you should as well."  
  
"Hm? How can I?"  
  
"So... make sure you have enough fruit juice available. How do most customers pay? Cash or credit card?"  
  
Hime blinked a few times. "Fruit juice?"  
  
"Yeah... that's what you told me... since Kannai doesn't drink any alcohol..."  
  
"Yeaown, good idea. I'm off to buy fruit juice, then. Lots of it, since he can stay up for two or more nights if we ask him."  
  
"Just out of curiosity... has he ever submitted to anyone?"  
  
"... ... ... ... ... not that I know. Not even me. I thought I'd be able to beat him into submission, but I didn't."  
  
"... that's saying something..."  
  
"Why, thank you." as an afterthought, she added "You're free to try, though."  
  
"Why don't we team up on him?"  
  
That thought get Hime more than a little aroused. "Sure... when are you free?"  
  
"Why not early tomorrow morning?"  
  
"Alright. Tonight I'll ask Kannai if he can make it. Come to think of it, he's never around when you are..."  
  
***  
  
/Ah, damn... can already hear some irritating teacher cackling about my being late.../ Kojirou walked slowly on his way to school, not a bit worried about being late, but fearing for his poor ears when he got there. The subway ride was quite uneventful, except for an uncomfortable feeling of routine. Then again, that's what school is supposed to feel like, right?  
  
***  
  
"Sasaki-san, you do realize you're late, right?"  
  
/Here comes.../ "Look, sensei, I even did my homework this time, so can't you thank me by going right to the point?"  
  
"What did you say?" the usual response to most of everything Kojirou said at school.  
  
"Look, old lady, I was busy at home, I didn't get late here cause I wanted to. So you can waste both your time and mine, or just go ahead and tell me my punishment. But I'd be happy if you chose the latter."  
  
The old, stressed teacher frowned. "If that's what you want, you'll stay in detention after class, then talk to the headmistress. And your sister will have to come and talk to us."  
  
Kojirou shook his head "Forget onee-chan coming here. She has more to do. Bloody damnation, even I have more to do... if you want, I can give her a message, but I won't make her come here. Specially to talk to the likes of you."  
  
"The... likes of me, you say?"  
  
"Yes. Now, excuse me." he walked past the angry and woman entered the classroom, smiling at his startled classmates, who felt outraged and envious because he had faced the sensei. And won.  
  
When he passed by Reine, Kojirou leaned forward to give her a peck on the cheek. When she raised her head to look at whoever had done it, Kojirou smiled sweetly, his eyes closing, very different from his usual malicious, feline grins. Lain's eyes widened and she tried to say something, but the words were too weak to reach her lips. Kojirou smiled again at that, then walked to his desk, taking his NAVI and textbook from his backpack and, like a Buddhist monk, gathering all his patience in order to stand the upcoming class.  
  
***  
  
Suddenly, Yousuke found himself looking up at his sensei. He was a wiry man, standing in his gi, black belt cinched tightly around his waste. Sharp eyes didn't soften when they looked down at Genji's prone form, and after awhile, he spoke.  
  
"Aren't you going to get up Yousuke? It looks uncomfortable laying there on the floor." Yousuke rubbed his backside as he stood up. The two men stood for a second in the now still dojo before he cleared his throat.  
  
"Did you see where I went wrong sensei?" asked Yousuke as he brushed imaginary dust off his gi. His instructor shrugged.  
  
"You tripped, of course. Remember when you train that it is important to keep your mind in the here and now. Don't let yourself wander off into the clouds until you can do your katas in your sleep. They are just as much for self-defense as they are a conduit to focus the mind, and when you move as fast as you were to that beat, you should take it seriously."  
  
"I understand sensei, thank you for your advice."  
  
"You're welcome." said his sensei as Yousuke moved to hit turn the music back on. As he did, his instructor spoke up again. "Wait Yousuke, I know you came to practice, but there are other things to our style that you should remember to refresh yourself with whenever you hit a block in your training."  
  
"Yes sensei?" said Yousuke.  
  
"So, I have noticed that among my students here, you are doing the best. You understand the forms, and why they move the way they do. To some, any karate style is just like the other. No spirituality can be achieved in this city of Tokyo. But our style is no different then that practiced outside, or anywhere, in that it too can be a way for enlightenment. Belt color as I have means very little, it's for the young students to gauge each other, but knowledge is on the inside. I think that we should go out to talk, why don't we go for a walk Yousuke?"  
  
"Of course, sensei. Let me get my things." said Yousuke.  
  
***  
  
Eiri sat watching the odd boy with her eyes half-closed, her hands holding up her head. With one hand, she reached quietly into her desk and pulled out her own NAVI, setting it next to her useless English textbook. The silver paneling cast a light on the ceiling of the room, alerting all that her NAVI was, in fact, out. She pressed a few jade buttons and send a message in Chinese to Caomei.  
  
Caomei looked at her own Hello Kitty-plated NAVI as the message came through. After she read the message on the screen, she shrugged at Eiri.  
  
Even though he had been in the class since the beginning of the school year, neither one of them knew what to think of the boy. They had spoken to him enough to know that he lived in the "house shrouded in mystery" that they passed every day on the way to school. Once, just once, he had walked with them. They had been late that day. His sister was the legendary beauty of the area. But what else? Neither of them knew, and didn't know if he wanted them to know.  
  
Eiri stared at the back of his head, as he sat in front of her, and looked over at her "sister" to her right. Hesitantly, she reached out a pale hand, poking his shoulder. Her paleness was nothing compared to his, but both of them were definately together in the pale family. She retracted her hand to put a stray curl behind her ear.  
  
"Hey, Kojirou. How are you today?" she whispered as she pushed her NAVI to the edge of her desk.  
  
"Well, you know, dear... I'm in class, but other than that, fine." Kojirou wasn't really inclined on mentioning the earlier thrashing of his house. Though he really liked Eiri's voice, he turned back towards the blackboard and turned on his own, shining black NAVI. Pressing a pew pointy buttons that hurt his fingers, he sent a message to her. Kojirou figured this way there would be a smaller chance of the sensei realizing neither was paying attention to class, and so smaller would be the chance that he'd have to stand more cackling.  
  
___  
  
And class being English, I suppose you share the feeling, ne? ^_~  
  
___  
  
***  
  
It was a beautiful morning. The sky was an intense pastel blue, the streets moderately calm for the 10 AM hour. And of course, why would the teenagers, sitting detached in front of a vending machine, be bothered with school on a day like this?  
  
"You know, I can't believe you drink that." The raven-haired girl harrumphed, her hands placed on her hips.  
  
"Eh? It's just... coffee." Satoshi expressed a muddled look, brandishing the can of UCC at the girl as if it were a weapon.  
  
"It's bad for you. They say the caffeine can cause all sorts of health problems and heart stuff." She sat down next to him, her legs crossed primly. She rubbed them- in addition to being beautiful, the morning was cold.  
  
"Hontou ka? Who's 'They', anyway, Naoko?" Satoshi asked, popping the lid to the can.  
  
"Some American scientist."  
  
"Pffft." Satoshi took a large sip from the can. Naoko rolled her eyes and stared into the traffic. Satoshi grabbed her attention by nudging her side with the crown of his head. "Shingo wrote me an e-mail last night, ya know?"  
  
"What's the boss want this time, Koneko?" Naoko asked, affectionately calling him by his DJ name.  
  
"Mmm...." Satoshi coughed; a bit of the coffee had gone down the wrong part of his throat.  
  
"Told you it's bad for you." Naoko smiled triumphantly.  
  
"Shut up."  
  
"About Shingo?"  
  
"Yeah. Seems that Tatsumi and Shizue both fell out for last night; Shingo's gonna need us at the Tsubasa tomorrow." Satoshi took a defiant swig of the coffee.  
  
"Tomorrow? That was our day off..." Naoko sighed. "Bet those two are off fucking or something."  
  
"Tatsumi's gay and Shizue's Christian," Satoshi tossed the empty can into a conveniently placed trash bag. "So.... no."  
  
"I was trying to be funny." Naoko pouted.  
  
Satoshi smiled. "Didn't work," He answered.  
  
"Oh, shut up!" Naoko growled, aiming a playful swat towards Satoshi's head. Satoshi stood up in time to warrant a slap on his calf.  
  
"Wanna catch some lunch?" Satoshi asked, sliding his backpack up his shoulders. Naoko nodded in agreement, stood, and the two took off from their bench to search for a restaurant.  
  
A beautiful day...  
  
***  
  
Eiri shrank down into her chair, muttering English obscenities to herself. The sound had been more than enough to unnerve her, and the horror in teacher's face worried her. As the huge man walked into the room, she reached across in horror to grab her honored little sister, Caomei. They held tightly to each other, fearing what the man might do to them. Eiri looked at Lain, who sat completely still, looking with her normal wide-eyed stare at the newcomer. She opened her mouth to speak to Kojirou, but the look on his face told her that he knew the man. She became faintly aware that Caomei had buried her head in Eiri's shoulder and warm tears were permeating the thin cloth of her white shirt. She patted Caomei's back and then buried her face in Caomei's abundant ebony hair. And thus they sat, fearing the worse from this meeting...  
  
Kojirou heard sobbing coming from behind him. As he turned back he saw Eiri and Caomei hugging each other desperately. For some reason this got him more than a little sad.  
  
Tak stood up to his full height and looked around. "Of ALL the GODDAM places..."  
  
Seeing he was the only one who could do anything, Kojirou stood up and walked closer to Tak. As he passed by Reine, he realized she was just sitting there, as if she wasn't even in class.  
  
/Damnation... he is pissed right now... good that nobody here is the reason for that.../ "Heh... my thoughts exactly. Anyway, welcome back, I guess. Though I wonder what made you come here..."  
  
Tak just shrugged in response.  
  
"Well, I'm assuming you don't wanna stay for long..." he turned back to the teacher "Sensei. My friend Takashi here is lost, so can I show him to the exit?"  
  
"Might as well enroll now I'm here..."  
  
"If you want... is that alright, sensei?"  
  
The English teacher gathered all her strength and nodded slowly. In one of the middle rows, a girl shivered in rage at the disturbance of the class. She glared at Kojirou, who had to suppress the urge to blow her a kiss.  
  
"Anyway, Tak, let's get going..."  
  
As the pair walked away, Tak asked Kojirou "Who was the pissed off chick?"  
  
"That's Aya. She's the class representative, and very annoying for someone that cute." he said shrugging  
  
"Long as she doesn't make a pass at me."  
  
"Yeaown, that's quite the idea. Oh, and try not to give her reasons not to like you."  
  
"Such as?"  
  
"Such as showing no respect for the teachers, coming to class without your uniform, and so on... she can put many people against you if she wants... ... ... not that I think you'd care, but just in case."  
  
Tak muttered under his breath "She and I are gonna get along FINE... or she's gonna end up in the hospital... or worse. And I'm gonna look fucking ridiculous in a school uniform... it clashes with the eyes and hair."  
  
Kojirou looked into Tak's eyes, then down to his body "True... but isn't that what uniforms are for?"  
  
"It's gonna make me look stupid above and beyond because of my frame."  
  
"I can see that... but then again I can't recall one guy who ever looked good in a uniform."  
  
"Military uniform maybe... but certainly not a school one."  
  
"Military... yeaown, maybe. Anyways, here's the enrolling office. They're gonna ask you so many questions you'll forget why they started in first place... then I guess you'll be able to get to class already. Which reminds me, don't think you'll have to stand Aya, unless you got held back and will end up in our classroom."  
  
"Kojirou... can you give Nakita a buzz?"  
  
"Yeah. What do I tell him?"  
  
"That I bodydumped at a goddam school."  
  
"Alright, anything else?"  
  
"And get over here since he's my legal guardian."  
  
"OK. I'll call him from my NAVI when I'm back in class."  
  
"Thanks."  
  
And it started.  
  
Kojirou went back to his classroom, telling the teacher he'd left Tak to enroll. It seemed most everyone had calmed down by then. He got back to his desk and answering Eiri's message.  
  
___  
  
You could try to get dismissed from this class... but on second thought, it's a good chance to gossip with Mei-chan, ne?  
  
___  
  
Then he sent Nakita the one Tak had asked.  
  
___  
  
Hoe, Nakita!  
  
Kojirou here. You won't believe it, but Tak just came back from his bodydump... right outside of my classroom. He's enrolling right now, so they'll need you here since you're his legal guardian.  
  
___  
  
***  
  
Nakita got Kojirou's message... the paintpeeling language alerted Hime.  
  
"What's the matter, Nakita?" she asked as she finished changing.  
  
"Tak dumped... and must have landed on his head."  
  
"Hm? Why do you say that?"  
  
"He wants to complete high school."  
  
Hime raised an eyebrow at that. "Just like that? Yeaown, damn right he must have landed on his head. Anyway, you better get there, right?"  
  
"Yeah... this could take a while... no ones gonna believe he's sixteen."  
  
"Can't blame them, though."  
  
"I gotta dig out his birth certificate. Might not see you until tomorrow."  
  
"OK... guess we have to procrastinate that team up on Kannai, then."  
  
"Crap... forgot about that..."  
  
"It's alright..."  
  
"I'll try but no guarantees."  
  
"No need for that. When you have the time, let me know and I talk to him."  
  
"Oh well, see ya."  
  
Hime grabbed and kissed Nakita before he went away. Shortly after that, she went out to get the fruit juice she'd surely need for the night.  
  
Nakita went walkabout... first to the apartment he shared with his younger brother... picking up a copy of Tak's birth certificate and academic transcripts... Making sure he hadn't forgotten anything... Nakita headed to the school that Kojirou attended. He managed to find the front office... where his brother had parked himself beside a small mountain of forms.  
  
"Hi, Tak."  
  
"'lo Nakita."  
  
"Well... I'll go give em the copies of the stuff they need and sign the stuff I have to."  
  
Tak's head impacting with the door lintel provoked a stream of paint peeling English. Most of the senior class understood it. So did the teacher. Though Nakita had won one concession. Because Tak was a senior and because of his .... above average... physical size, he didn't have to wear a uniform. 


	3. Layer 3 : Fury

Eiri looked down at the flashing message panel as the Japanese characters appear anew on the screen. She smiled and tapped a message back.  
  
___  
  
I do believe that Caomei needs the English classes. A British man moved into our house this morning. He's studying to be a doctor at the Daigaku. They said that he is on some scholarship in my father's name... I didn't even know there was such a scholarship.  
  
___  
  
Eiri sent the message and then looked over at Caomei, who had timidly returned, teary-eyed, to her seat. She was bent over a piece of paper sketching madly, and Eiri could see that it was a beautiful, if depressed- looking, woman. Both girls sighed softly.  
  
/When the hell will this day end?/ thought Eiri /I want to get home and check out the new boy.../  
  
Good things in the future... Eiri hoped Caomei was right. She wouldn't mind living with that sexiness forever. Just the thought of him was enough to make her almost scream out in ecstasy. She was almost tempted to tell Teacher that she was sick and needed to go home.  
  
"Ah... perfect..." Eiri murmured, half to herself, and half to her sister and the frail boy in front of her.  
  
Kojirou replied happily, as he knew now there was a way for him to stay in the classroom without sleeping.  
  
___  
  
So, you have a guest now? That's cool. I wonder how he's feeling in that Eden's Garden of a house you have...  
  
___  
  
Eiri looked down and typed a message back.  
  
____  
  
He's a bit of a pervert [he likes teenage girl's panties...], but he's as hot as anything. He seems to enjoy his room. He's got the room on the top floor with the all-around balcony looking to the back yard...  
  
____  
  
She couldn't believe she was telling a boy that was younger than her about her hot housemate... not like Kojirou did care about that at all. His twisted sense of beauty was far beyond gender. He grinned widely and started replying.  
  
___  
  
Well, you can't really blame him for acting like a pervert, considering who he's living with. But I got a feeling you're not entirely angry with that...  
  
You and Mei-chan jankenpo'ed for him already? :P  
  
___  
  
She giggled, remembering the stunned look on Adam's face when her high heel slammed him in the face...  
  
___  
  
Mei-chan isn't at all interested... she's given him to me. I hit him with a shoe, by the way.  
  
___  
  
Kojirou suppressed a laugh.  
  
___  
  
Watch your actions, sweetheart... what if he also has a shoe fetish?  
  
___  
  
Eiri couldn't repress her laugh when she saw that message. She grabbed her handkerchief from her desk and pretended she was coughing, really laughing. The glare of the teacher told Eiri that she had been found out. She stared up at the old woman, contemplating her plan to leave.  
  
/Ara, ara.../ Kojirou scratched the back of his head.  
  
___  
  
Eiri-chan, if you keep on laughing like that I won't be able to stop either... but seriously, the next time you throw a shoe at him, you might not be able to get it back. I can almost picture him pouting and hiding it from you.  
  
___  
  
She thought for a moment then tapped a note back.  
  
___  
  
I wouldn't be surprised if all of my little lacy thongs are gone when I return home. My bathroom probably won't have my dirty clothes on the floor anymore either.  
  
___  
  
Kojirou burst out laughing. He knew he wouldn't be able to hide it anyway. After getting his breath back, he looked up to see an old, angry woman staring at him and Eiri. "Guess who's going to stay here after class, Eiri- chan..."  
  
"Very perceptive, Sasaki-san. You and Tsugoyaki-san WILL stay here after class. But for now, let me know what amuses you so..." the teacher said as she walked to get their NAVIs.  
  
Eiri panicked and clutched her NAVI to her chest. She sure as hell DIDN'T want the teacher reading aloud to the class about her sexy houseguest and her lacy thongs... Kojirou just put his right hand on top of his, shaking his head. "I'd advise against it."  
  
Eiri stared at the back of Kojirou's head, wondering what the hell he was planning to do.  
  
"Oh, and why shouldn't I do it?" the teacher asked amusedly. Kojirou tapped a few buttons in response. "It will serve you nothing. Unless you're a psychic and can read my mind for the password."  
  
Eiri scolded herself for her own stupidity. She laid down her NAVI on her desk and set her password on, then grinned at the teacher in response. The old woman seemed about to scream or beat the two students up. Since neither would be suitable for a teacher she just sent both out of the classroom. Eiri seemed pleased with herself and walked proudly out of the classroom. When she got out of the door, she looked at the huge dent in the floor.  
  
"Aaaaah, freedom..." Kojirou said as he stood up and stretched. He even scratched his eyes like a cat, just for fun, then walked out.  
  
"You... know the green-haired man, didn't you?"  
  
"Yeah, I just met him today."  
  
"Does he always yell English obscenities?"  
  
"Not that I know... but I think he does. He's got the worst temper I've ever seen."  
  
"Is he actually staying here for school?"  
  
"It seems so. And it can be quite a dangerous thing. He seems to have a problem even bigger than mine with authority."  
  
Eiri thought silently for a few minutes then flashed back to that morning. "He was the guy in front of your house this morning who looked like he was going to tear it down..."  
  
"Yes, and he would really have done it had I taken a few more seconds to open it. He was there to test the Mansion's restraints... it proved to be a bad idea as soon as he started."  
  
"You'd think something that big could break anything..."  
  
Kojirou let out a long sigh "Exactly. And he did break a lot of things at home.  
  
At that time, Eiri looked up at the ceiling of the hallway. It was untouched. "How the hell did he get in here?"  
  
"Even I don't know for sure. His brother explained it to me and onee-chan, but I don't know enough about the Wired to understand it fully... ... ...in few words... he can access the Wired with his body instead of using a NAVI. But he's got no control when, where and if he's coming back."  
  
She was silent for a moment... "That is so fucked up..."  
  
"I thought quite the same thing when I heard the explanation. I wish I were able to say 'I've seen weirder things.' , but this time I can't."  
  
Eiri listened to the continuing lesson inside the classroom. "Do you think that Teacher will notice if I leave?"  
  
Kojirou smiled at that. "Hoe, you're certainly eager to get back home... which reminds me, how does your guest-soon-to-be-sexual-slave look?"  
  
Eiri licked her lips, thinking about Adam. She pushed a randomly hanging curl behind her ear and then started her description. "Dark blond hair... obviously dyed because of the light brown roots. His eyes are fabulous... many, many layers of different blues. He is slightly tanned, but not too much. Very tall... almost a foot taller than me. Muscular arms..." She stopped before she felt the need to run to the restroom and pleasure herself... at school.  
  
Kojirou felt numb as he saw the look on his classmate's face. He had to breathe deeply with his eyes closed for some seconds in order to keep control. He realized he wasn't paying that much attention to her words.  
  
She looked over at Kojirou. "Fucking hot. Literally... figuratively."  
  
"I... *breathe in* ... *breathe out*... see. Well, given he is this hot, and a pervert, you really should get home right now. When and if the old lady realizes, you'll be far away already."  
  
Eiri smiled at him. She turned quickly on her heels and started walking down the hallway. She looked back at him.  
  
"Just tell Caomei to take my stuff home. She has a railcard- it shouldn't take her too long to get home."  
  
Kojirou walked closer to her, smiling. "Alright, bloody kisu." With trained speed and grace, he slashed his lips open, drawing blood, then brushed them against Eiri's slightly parted ones. Although surprised for a second, she licked the blood off after his half-kiss, savouring the saltiness of it. "Thanks" she said, then winked at him. He closed his eyes in response, as a spark made it's way up his spine.  
  
Eiri spun sharply and then walked quickly down the hallway.  
  
***  
  
A couple of eternities had passed, and Kojirou still waited outside the classroom. /End, stupid class... I wish I could have gone home, like... E... i... ri... / Kojirou touched his still bleeding lips. As he did that, he realized he could still feel the sweet taste of Eiri's. And he could hear his classmate's voice, and still see her beautiful eyes... Kojirou's whole body shook.  
  
He needed Eiri... no, it was more serious than that. He desired her. He raged for her. And a bloody spiral of images of Eiri clad in suffocatingly tight, revealing leather clothes, tied to or tying Kojirou to the Mansion's walls raced in Kojirou's mind, destroying what little control he had over himself.  
  
He was barely able to stand up, as he felt as if about to faint, as he really was. The boy staggered all the way to the bathroom. As he got there, he went to the closest sink, stuffed some paper towels into the drain and opened the faucet, burying his face under it. As the sink got completely full, he kept his face inside it for long minutes. When Kojirou raised his head again to look in the mirror, he felt a lot calmer, so he headed back to the hallway to wait for the class to end. For how long he'd be able to maintain that state, no one could tell.  
  
***  
  
Eiri walked quickly, fearing that Teacher would come up behind her at any moment. She made record time, being almost home in about ten minutes. Her eyes filled with joy as she saw the Vespa still parked in the front lawn. She raced in, hoping to see Adam waiting for her on a couch when she arrived.  
  
Instead, she saw Adam sitting across from her sister in the living room.  
  
"Sister..." Eiri whispered.  
  
The older woman looked up at Eiri. Blonde and red streaks fell softly across her face. Her smile was radiant enough to fill the entire room with its glory. She stood quietly, almost slyly, then walked over to Eiri. At 5'11", she was 8 inches taller than her youngest sister. Eiri fell into her sister's arms.  
  
"Natsumi!" she screamed happily.  
  
Adam watched them, an almost stunned look on his face, as he hid the files he had been reviewing with the elder Tsugoyaki...  
  
***  
  
"Mei-chan, Eiri-chan went home already. And she asked me to tell you to take her stuff when you go back home... though I'd advise you not to go there already, as she is probably doing very pleasant things with your guest right now..." Kojirou would have grinned, but the feeling of numbness told him he was again starting to rage.  
  
Caomei looked up at him with large brown eyes. She reached over numbly and grabbed Eiri's bag and coat, then looked back at Kojirou.  
  
"Her sister's coming home today... I forgot to give her the message!" Her face twisted cutely and she sighed.  
  
"I see... well, I wonder if she'll be happy or angry with her sis showing up..." as an afterthought, he added "Or both."  
  
"I... think she likes this sister. She doesn't like one of her sisters, but... wait... what was she going to do with Adam?" she stared blankly at him innocently.  
  
Kojirou couldn't tell if it was feigned or true innocence in Caomei's eyes, so he went with the latter. "Well... from what she told me, Eiri-chan's more than a little interested in Adam... even if he's a pervert..." /Damn, Kojirou, chant or anything, but DON'T let your body take over.../  
  
"I think that they are very cute!" said Caomei, smiling. "They would have very cute little babies." to emphasize her point, Caomei cradled Eiri's coat in her arms like a baby.  
  
"I hope you're right, Mei-chan... *breathe in* ... ... *breathe out* ... ... after all... Eiri-chan does deserve to have cute kids..." only then Kojirou realized they'd been standing inside the classroom. "Hm, shouldn't we get going already?"  
  
"I do suppose so... Eiri might get worried if I don't make it home after she left me here..."  
  
/That is, if she does remember you between her sis and her object of desire... damnation, shut up, Kojirou!/ he motioned for Caomei to walk out first, then he went out of the room and after her.  
  
Caomei walked out, looking down at her tiny feet. "What's wrong, Kojirou- kun?" she whispered. "You are acting even more odd... than usual."  
  
"Oh... hm... *gulp* ... odd? How so?"  
  
She stopped abruptly, causing Kojirou to slam into her. She spun around and looked him right in the eyes. "Eiri!" she said loudly. "Eiri, Eiri, Eiri!" she narrowed her eyes slightly, trying to judge his reaction.  
  
Kojirou closed his eyes strongly, trying to focus on getting himself not to shiver. It was beyond useless. His legs weakened and he was in the verge of falling to his knees. Awkwardly, Caomei took a small step back, looking at the boy.  
  
"Alright... *pant*... Mei-chan... my whole body is aching for her.... *pant* ... there..." he breathed longly before continuing, "Are you happy?" he let his body recline against a wall and fell to a sitting position. Kojirou unbuttoned his shirt and swung his purse off his shoulders, holding it in one hand. "Now... ... ... ... can you help me up?"  
  
Caomei's mouth fell open and her face took on that 'Oh my God you want to do something nasty to my sister' look. She slowly put a medium-toned, tiny hand out and offered it to him. The boy gave her one of his feline 'Damn right, sweetie...' grins in response. He then grabbed the girl's hand and, forcing his feet against the wall, stood up. "But don't worry... ... ... ... not about her, at least..."  
  
"What do you want to do? From what you've hinted, she believes that she's taken."  
  
"Actually... Adam is the one... who is taken... ... but... ... ah, you wouldn't understand..."  
  
"If she loves Adam-san, why would you want to split them up?" again, her innocence flashed in her face.  
  
"Bloody hell... that's not it, Mei-chan..." /Hmmm, I'm not shivering anymore.../ "It's just... hormone overdrive, so to say... ... ahn... what happens to your body when you're sexually aroused?"  
  
Caomei looked either confused or embarrassed. She blinked a few times, then decided to ignore the question. "I..." she stopped and turned around, continuing down the hallway.  
  
"You do know, alright... and of course, you know what happens to most men's bodies." Kojirou waited a few seconds to see her reaction.  
  
"I have only read in textbooks." was her curt answer.  
  
"That's enough. You see, that's not how my body works. My blood, instead of concentrating where it should, rushes like a beast all around my body. So, some minutes ago, when all my mind was turned to taking Eiri-chan's body, instead of having an erection like most men, I felt all numb and weak... but as you can see it's over now. Though I wonder for how long."  
  
Caomei shuddered at the sexual thoughts, trying to force all knowledge of sex from her body. Suddenly, she remembered Eiri's comment about S&M at the Mansion and she grew pale. Was Kojirou wanting to do some sick S&M thing with her Eiri-chan? She winced.  
  
Kojirou scratched the back of his head "Oe, oe... no need to be scared... I can control myself... as long as you don't tease me like that again."  
  
"Perhaps I should use her birth name around you instead of saying her name..." Caomei looked up for a moment. "That way I don't have to have impure thoughts."  
  
Kojirou let out a short laugh. "So, let me try to understand that, you're blaming me for your having nasty ideas?"  
  
"I think about the sick things you would do with..." Caomei paused for a moment. "Elika-chan."  
  
"Elika? That's a beautiful name... but as I said, I wouldn't do anything to her if she didn't want me to. And she doesn't. So don't worry." Kojirou smiled sweetly at the cute girl.  
  
Caomei looked at him and smiled. He was really a decent guy, though her initial impressions of the day seemed otherwise.  
  
"I'm glad we had this cleared up, Mei-chan." Kojirou looked around to realize he was just next to his home. "This is where we part ways. Send Elika-chan a bloody kiss for me, alright?" he gave Caomei a peck on the cheek.  
  
She gasped a bit at the feel of his cold lips, but nodded.  
  
Kojirou bowed slightly, then crossed the street to disappear into the Mansion's darkness.  
  
Caomei kept on watching after the darkness for a moment, then continued her walk home.  
  
***  
  
The two stepped out of the dilapidated building that was the dojo and onto the neon-lit street of Tokyo. Cars moved past in a brilliant blur, tinny music played from a radio nearby. The masses of people moved past them as if they weren't there. Walking down the street, Yousuke's instructor began to speak to him, and he listened quietly.  
  
"Yousuke, I find that the most interesting thing about the world is its tendency to change so rapidly. Even now, our world is changing, becoming more advanced. It's the same with the martial arts that we practice. You know that the our school is the Kyouryokukou School, but do you understand the significance of the name?"  
  
"High-tension steel." said Yousuke. "I'm sure there is something to it, I've thought about it before."  
  
"It is good you have thought about it, with a name like that, I'm sure the answer will come to you if you think for a second." said his instructor.  
  
"I think I know why." said Yousuke, his teacher nodded for him to go on. "Right, our style of karate is much like the others I've seen except in how we train, and the rhythm that we use. Where some styles show how to be smooth in your strikes, ours is a jagged, rhythm-breaking style. It's modern and new, and emphasizes a sudden movement all at once. That's why it's 'high-tension'. Steel has been around for a long time, but it's a symbol for modern times. Even our name signifies a modern style, and so do our sensibilities."  
  
"That's very good Yousuke, I'm impressed with your insight. I will tell you something else about change, because that is our subject. Change is just as much building up as it is tearing down, and what is the universal force of tearing down Yousuke?"  
  
"I don't understand, it's a question I don't think about much."  
  
"I know, but that's because it may seem morbid to dwell on thoughts as universal destruction. Actually, it is not, anymore than it is morbid to contemplate the new growth in the spring. It is just a part of life, and a very important part. The answer, if you've studied physics or anything of that nature, is what is called 'entropy'. Does that ring any bells?"  
  
"Actually, I remember that. Entropy is the break-down of all existing systems, or the universal cooling of the universe or something." replied Yousuke.  
  
"Yes, but I'm speaking in this case of the dissolution of present systems. If you've studied history, you realize that for a new government to be established the old one has to break down. This is the same in every part of nature and the world. What does this tell you Yousuke?"  
  
"It tells me that for something new to occur, it must come only when another thing ends. So it is that destruction fosters growth."  
  
"That's right. Just like the growth of our school of thought and action put forth by our school of martial arts had to let certain traditions and thoughts die so we could move forward with the times. We keep what is important to us, but let everything else atrophy. In time we develop our own virtues that the past has lacked. In this way we grow. Do you understand Yousuke?"  
  
"I think so, sir. Is there anything else I should think about?" asked Yousuke.  
  
"No, I think that's enough for tonight. How did you get to the dojo? Did you walk or drive?" asked Yousuke's instructor. Yousuke was surprised to find that they had been walking for quite a while, and they were quite far away from the building they had started from. Luckily, he had walked, as the school hadn't been far from his apartment in the first place, and they had been walking more or less in that direction.  
  
"I walked, sir. I can make it home from here. I'll be in on Thursday!" he called, walking off.  
  
***  
  
Kojirou's entry to the Mansion was met by the sound of plastic being violently crushed. /Eh? Is Tak around here?/ "Hoe, I'm home..." he walked into the kitchen to find the source of the noise "Ah, hoe, Kannai!"  
  
"Greetings." Kannai was slightly taller, heavier and significantly stockier than Nakita's beanpole frame. He had matted black hair... the eyes matched. Personality wise, he was far colder and reserved.  
  
"I didn't know you were coming early today. Anyway, do you know where onee- chan is?"  
  
"No. I just recently arrived myself."  
  
"Ah, I see. Well, that goes without saying, but make yourself at home." Kojirou bowed, then climbed up the stairs to the fourth floor.  
  
Kannai started checking out the rooms... noting, with a slight frown that two were under repair... and mentally noting adjustments.  
  
"Hoe, onee-chan..." said Kojirou as he walked into Hime's room "I didn't know Kannai was coming this early. I guess we're about to have a busy day, huh?"  
  
"Actually just Kannai is going to have a busy day..."  
  
"Hm, I see." he gave Hime a peck on the cheek, then went to his own room to bathe and change.  
  
Kannai continued preparing... apparently oblivious to Hime's plans... about five minutes later, Hime went down to the lower floors. After some search, she found him. "Hoe, Kannai. I hope you don't mind, but for some reason so many people called asking for you I had to schedule them earlier than we usually open. You'll much likely have to be with two or more of them at once. Is that a problem for you?"  
  
"Then the overtime rate of pay will kick in earlier. Could be... mixed gender?"  
  
"More than fair. And yes, it could be."  
  
The piercing black eyes swept over Hime en passant...  
  
"You will have to notify those mixed-gender groups that have booked time with me their booking is tentative."  
  
"Tentative?"  
  
"That is what I said."  
  
"But what do you mean?"  
  
"I may not take such a group."  
  
"Oh. Alright, I'll let them know. When they arrive." /Well, I hope you take one particular group I have in mind.../  
  
"As you yourself have stated numerous times... while the Mansion makes every effort to ensure customers get their requested session with their requested employee... said employee has final veto."  
  
"Exactly. You do as you find best, I won't push it."  
  
"Precisely."  
  
"Well I'll be going then. You make the preparations you find necessary. I believe the first group will be here in..." she glanced at her watch "...about 45 minutes. If you need anything, use the intercom, I'll be in my room." Hime turned back and headed for the stairs. Kannai continued setting up... made a couple of phone calls...  
  
***  
  
Kojirou was in his bath, his thoughts had again turned to Eiri. It was a good thing, though, as working in state of rage intensified the fun since he'd have quite a lot of tension to release. /But come to think of it... I was supposed to be in detention right now.../ he shrugged and sank in the tub, his shaking body calmed don by the cold water.  
  
***  
  
The afternoon and night passed pretty standard. Pain, pleasure, recharge, yet more pain, more pleasure... the only big difference was that Kojirou was abnormally excited. Nothing seemed able to stop him, and he had added quite a few scars to his body, as well as other people's bodies.  
  
Hime was VERY pleased at that. It was always a spectacle when Kojirou was in state of rage. She, on the other hand, needed a break when it was almost midnight. So she went for the kitchen and got some juice, setting herself down for the first time in hours. Her body seemed a lot heavier than it really was. Awaiting her... was Nakita.  
  
Hime raised an eyebrow at the sight of her lover. "Ara? When did you come in?"  
  
"A little while ago... I didn't want to disturb you."  
  
Hime walked closer to Nakita and kissed him. When they broke the kiss, she asked again "Hm, let me rephrase... how did you get in?"  
  
"Kannai let me in. Speaking of which..."  
  
Kannai entered the kitchen... drained two bottles of apple juice and left again.  
  
"I see... by the way, about that teamup... from what he said today, I think Kannai won't agree with it."  
  
"How so?"  
  
"You see, he had some mixed-gender groups scheduled for today. When I told him about them, he said he might not take such groups."  
  
"Well... it is his call.. as you have preached..."  
  
"I know. And he said the same thing. Well, I wouldn't dare push it, since he's one of our biggest crowd draggers."  
  
"Like with me and Tak professionally competing."  
  
Hime nodded "Yeaown, exactly like that." as an afterthought, she added "Though Kannai did take the groups... he was the active part in all cases."  
  
"Well.. I'm gonna have a packed week..."  
  
"You bet." Hime answered winking. She then looked at the clock on the kitchen's wall. "I have an electrical stimulation session in some minutes. You want to watch?"  
  
"Nothing else to do..."  
  
"Which reminds me, what did you come here for?"  
  
"Well... you most importantly..."  
  
Hime smiled happily at that. "Well, let's get going, then." she took Nakita's hand and led him to a room, closing the door after he entered.  
  
There was a one way mirror on one wall, next to which a group of people gathered eagerly, sitting on what looked like theater chairs.  
  
/Hope Nakita knows what he's doing... hey... why am I complaining... I'm getting double time./  
  
Some minutes later, a middle-aged, metal mail clad man was led into the room by Kojirou. He was bound to a large metal X in the opposite wall, then the boy got a large vase filled with water from a corner and splashed it on the customer. The man looked at the mirror, knowing there were people on the other side, and smiled.  
  
Kojirou bowed at the mirror and headed out, crossing with Hime at the door. She leaned down and kissed her brother, who said something that couldn't be heard to her before leaving. Hime locked the door and walked closer to the mirror, grinning maliciously and eliciting much groaning and sighing from the watchers.  
  
Hime started very mildly, setting her Raiya to the weakest. Instead of whipping, she passed the whip slowly through the customer's body. He shook and seemingly moaned, as did the voyeurs. The show hadn't even started, and some of them were already masturbating. Nakita withheld comment.  
  
In little time, Hime was more than a little excited. She set the Raiya aside and got a pair of clips that connected to a large battery. As a spark passed between then, Hime licked her lips and closed them each around one of the man's nipples. He arched his body and seemingly screamed, but the watchers couldn't say for sure since the room was acoustically isolated.  
  
/Glad I don't have to double for him in the bedroom.../  
  
The session went quite pleasurably for everyone. The customer was more than satisfied, he had orgasmed at least three times, two of them when Hime shocked his crotch. Of course Hime just let that happen cause the now cum drenched metal suit was his. He walked out first, followed by the mistress after she put the toys back in place.  
  
After the performance, Hime went to meet Nakita again. "So, what did you think?"  
  
"Can't say I would enjoy that... but diversity makes the world."  
  
She giggled in response. "But wouldn't you enjoy... not even as active part?"  
  
"Nah..." Nakita shook his head.  
  
Hime looked at him strangely. "And why not?"  
  
"Just... don't... reminds me... of having to subdue Tak too much...."  
  
She gave Nakita another awkward look. "What's that so suddenly?"  
  
Nakita fell silent and stayed that way.  
  
Hime knew there was something SERIOUSLY wrong... "Did something happen today?"  
  
"Nah... guess I spent too much time thinking about what I had to do to Tak when he was non compos mentis..."  
  
"Well, I hope some time here will bring your nastiness back..."  
  
"Maybe... but I'm not the sadist... Reika and Kannai are."  
  
Hime looked downright outraged. "You're not the sadist? So I suppose you have another name for choking me when we were making love..."  
  
"That was just a kiss..."  
  
"That settles it. Who the hell are you? And I sincerely hope you have a good explanation for coming here and posing as Nakita."  
  
"Oh, would stopping a psychopath from serial murder be a good enough reason?"  
  
Hime raised an eyebrow, with the most skeptical look on her face. "Excuse me?"  
  
"You asked what reason I had, I gave you it."  
  
"And now you explain this reason. And tell me who you are."  
  
"Nakita recognizes he has borderline psychopathic tendencies. I'm merely a double he hired."  
  
"Borderline psychopathic tendencies..." Hime echoed absently. "... ... ... ... ... alright. You come with me." Hime led the double to another room, where Sari was making out with another girl Hime didn't know. Se approached her employee from behind and kissed her neck, while cupping her breasts. She turned to the other girl, smiling gently. "I'll have to borrow her for some minutes, OK?" she said with a wink.  
  
"Sari, I have a session in ten minutes in the basement's third voodoo room. Maybe I won't be able to be there in time, so could you go there and let them know about it?"  
  
"Yeah, I guess."  
  
"Thank you." she locked her lips against Sari's shortly before leading her by the hand to the other girl.  
  
Hime then got out of the room turned to Nakita's double. "So, now can you explain in detail why Nakita has hired you?"  
  
"Well... he's the professional psychologist... one of his personas is, at least..."  
  
"Keep going... actually, come to the upper floors. I'd rather have nobody else hear that."  
  
The double shrugged and warily followed.  
  
"Now, then... keep going."  
  
"Nakita has recognized, much to his credit, that he has at least three personas... one is the normal, unassuming kickboxing psychologist..."  
  
"The others?"  
  
"Numero duo is Kannai... the third... I don't know but it's presumably psychopathic."  
  
"Bloody hell... how am I ever supposed to believe that?"  
  
"That's what he told me."  
  
She let out a long sigh. "Alright... so... what else did he tell you?"  
  
"He don't wanna let the third persona take control."  
  
"I still don't get it. How's that supposed to help?"  
  
"As far as I understand it... when Nakita's around... stress builds up... and that's gotta be relieved..."  
  
"Alright... and?"  
  
"Enter Kannai."  
  
"I see... as for the third?"  
  
"When too much stress builds up... Nakita snaps. The third persona takes control.. and we don't wanna know what happens from there."  
  
"What I still don't understand is what you have to do with all that."  
  
"Isn't it obvious? While Kannai is at work... you did want to team up with Nakita on him..."  
  
"And? It ISN'T obvious."  
  
"Well.. Nakita hasn't managed to clone himself."  
  
"Bloody damnation... can you explain that straight, please?"  
  
"Well.. if Nakita's supplying the body for Kannai... who's doing the same for Nakita?"  
  
"But we were NOT gonna team up on Kannai. Not tonight, at least."  
  
"So sure?"  
  
"Yeaown... I was gonna ask him some other time."  
  
"Also.. when Nakita snaps... his physical strength increases to approximate his brother's."  
  
"I see... well... is Nakita in charge right now, or Kannai?"  
  
"Well.. I would assume Kannai."  
  
"Alright... and how your coming here would stop the third persona to take over? ... ... oh, wait a sec. I want this recorded." Hime headed for her room, coming shortly after with a small voice recorder in her hand. "Alright, now you start." she said as she turned it on.  
  
"I'm only here to do the teamup. Kannai's driving the boat to relieve the built up stress."  
  
"Now I see... but Nakita had told me he'd have no time for the teamup... well, anyway... what's your full name?"  
  
"That's not important."  
  
"Is for me."  
  
"Ask Nakita," the man replied with a sardonic grin, "when he's around."  
  
Hime rolled her eyes, sighing. "Alright... and you were called here because?"  
  
"Nakita hired me."  
  
"What did he hire you for?"  
  
"What does it look like?"  
  
"I want that recorded. So say it."  
  
"No. You draw your own conclusions. Now my contract with him has been frustrated, I am leaving."  
  
"No, you're not." Hime answered with an evil grin. "You came here with a purpose, and be it far from me to frustrate it. Let's go talk to Kannai. Oh... and you better impersonate Nakita's sadistic side."  
  
"As you wish."  
  
"Good boy..." Hime headed back to the lower floors, searching for Kannai.  
  
***  
  
The double took advantage of the momentary distraction to bail.  
  
Out the front doors... down a side alley... then he started running... removing the disguise as he ran...  
  
Skidding to a halt near an empty dumpster... the bits of the disguise are hauled in.... in follows a primed incendiary grenade... he starts running again... 3 seconds later... the grenade detonates... slagging the dumpster down...  
  
***  
  
Only when she did find Kannai, Hime realized whoever it was had left. She was burning in anger, but was able to hide it well enough.  
  
"Nakita and I were thinking about teaming up on you, to... hmmm... see if we can put you into submission. So... is that alright with you?"  
  
Kannai appeared to give the matter some thought....  
  
"You don't have to answer it right now."  
  
"Well... I have never found submission even remotely arousing or pleasing..."  
  
"Say no more. I'll tell Nakita you don't want it, he'll understand."  
  
"Understood."  
  
Hime turned away and left, gritting her teeth. She needed to discharge her frustration. "Someone might not leave the Mansion tonight..." 


	4. Layer 4 : Paranormality

"Ooooow... damnation, where am I? My whole body hurts..." Kojirou would have scratched his eyes, but his hands were tied to a large metal X... "Onee-chan?" /Ah, damn.../ "Onee-chan... I gotta get to school..." /Oh, yeaown, Kojirou, you DO care.../  
  
Kojirou resigned himself to being tied and waited for his sister. She only woke up two hours later. Either that or she had been watching him and just decided it was a good time to go and set Kojirou free. It didn't matter since he wasn't late for school anyway. The kid took his time having breakfast, taking a long cold bath and even sketching some pictures of Eiri.  
  
He was still unsure about showing them to her, given they were as far from standard as possible. Kojirou particularly liked the one of her crucified in an inverted cross. He could almost feel the neko kanji burned on her left breast.  
  
***  
  
"HOOOE, Eiri-chan, Mei-chan!" Kojirou cried from his bedroom's window as he saw the girls passing in front of the Mansion. "I'll be down in a minute, so can you wait?"  
  
Eiri looked up and waved. "Yeah, but hurry up! We don't want to be late!"  
  
/Again.../ Kojirou closed the window and soon was out of his home. Strange enough, he was able to move the heavy metal door. "Thanks for waiting."  
  
"It's no problem." said Caomei and Eiri in chorus.  
  
"Do you think Teacher will be displeased?" asked Eiri after a while.  
  
"Hm? About what?... ah, you mean us skipping detention... I suppose so... not like I really care, of course... but she will be heavily displeased." Kojirou answered, shrugging.  
  
Eiri sighed and shifted her school bag on her shoulder. Caomei looked up at her and then looked at the houses they were walking past. Kojirou was more concentrated on the thick thread of wires that lurked above them. Of all the times he had walked that street, why only now... it all seemed so fascinating that he had to stop.  
  
Eiri and Caomei kept walking for a few seconds, but stared back at him with confused looks on their faces.  
  
"Is something wrong, Kojirou-kun?" Caomei asked quietly.  
  
"Not really wrong... ... it's just... I never noticed..." he pointed at the horizon, to where the thread extended. "It's like the electricity is taking over the whole city... ... like we have no control over it anymore... I suppose depending on where you live, you can't even see the sky. I don't really know why I thought of that right now."  
  
The girls were quiet for a moment and then Eiri looked at Kojirou firmly and held out her hand. "Enough thought, we need to get to school!" she said sarcastically. She turned around and started walking down the street again. Kojirou shook his head. "Yeaown, we do. As much as I hate that, I too have to get there... well just keep walking, I can catch you..." before he had finished the sentence, he already had his scrapbook in hand, trying to sketch what he saw. Eiri stopped and looked back at him, confused. A little while later, he ran after the girls, a happy look on his face. "Well... it's sketched. I can take more time to think about it later."  
  
"What is sketched?" said Caomei quietly.  
  
"Why, the street. Hm, actually the wiring over it. It's quite fascinating, if you look at it the right way." he answered while handing her his scrapbook. The picture seemed exactly like the street, but the phrase under it was quite disturbing. In blurry kanji, the words "IS thAt REalITy?" could be read.  
  
Caomei scrunched up her face and looked at Eiri. Eiri took the sketchbook from her younger counterpart and looked at the picture. Confused, she ran her fingers over the kanji, then looked to see how many pages of the sketchbook were filled.  
  
"What else do you have drawn in here?" she asked Kojirou.  
  
"Hmmm... there are some attempts at jewel design... some sad excuses for clothing design... manga and anime characters..."  
  
"I didn't know that you liked drawing so much."  
  
"Most people at school don't. They think I'm taking notes." Kojirou answered with a wink. "By the way, there are some sketches of you there..."  
  
Eiri looked at him oddly. "Of me?"  
  
"Hmmm... yeaown." Kojirou had a worried look "Is that alright?"  
  
"I suppose... there's no harm in drawing someone."  
  
Kojirou just flashed one of his feline grins in response. "Oh, and Mei- chan, I hope you don't get jealous."  
  
Caomei smiled slightly but didn't look back at Kojirou, wondering what kind of drawings he would have done of Eiri. "Where are these drawings?" she asked.  
  
"In the scrapbook... they're close to the street picture, but Eiri-chan got to skim it from the beginning..."  
  
Eiri looked quietly through the sketchbook as she walked. When she got to a picture of herself, she paused and stared at it. As Kojirou realized she was taking her time with one picture, he figured it was one of hers. "What do you think?"  
  
Eiri looked at the picture for a bit longer then put her right hand over her left breast. She handed the sketchbook back the Caomei and then stopped to look back at Kojirou.  
  
"How did you know about my tattoo?" she said half-harshly.  
  
Kojirou raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"  
  
Eiri looked around, seeing if there was anyone from school around them that would make a big deal about what she was about to do. Once she felt it was okay, she started unbuttoning her blouse.  
  
"Hoe, Eiri-chan... you don't mean you..."  
  
Once two buttons were undone, she moved the open part to over her left breast, exposing the lacy frills of her white bra and showing the top of the pale breast. In dark red ink, the neko kanji was written.  
  
Kojirou could only stare in awe for some time. "... so... beautiful..."  
  
As the school bell rang, Eiri rebuttoned her blouse and looked at him oddly. At that moment, all his thoughts were turned to kissing Eiri's creamy skin.  
  
"We're late..." she said, then turned around to Caomei "Come on Kojirou- kun."  
  
"I had no idea...really, I'd never think you do have a tattoo just like it." Kojirou just shook his head. He needed to get to class. "Well... anyway, let's get going."  
  
"Teacher is going to be so mad..." said Eiri as she grabbed Caomei's hand and started running in the school building.  
  
"Hoe, wait..." Kojirou started walking faster, but running was way out of question. He entered the classroom less than one minute after the teacher, which was a lot earlier than he used to, so he got no cackling this time. After giving Lain the traditional peck on the cheek, he went for his desk, glaring with feigned anger at Eiri and Caomei.  
  
As class started, Eiri looked down and saw a flashing message icon. She clicked it and it showed that she had 2 messages. She opened the first one, from Caomei.  
  
___  
  
Just a reminder, Eiri-chan, Muqin comes home tonight from China, so I won't be going home with you. I'll be with her all of break.  
  
___  
  
She smiled as she opened the second one, for it was from her sister. She nearly gasped as the read the note.  
  
___  
  
Eiri-chan- I'm going to spend some time with the Ueda's in Shimonoseki this weekend. Make Adam good dinners! Have a great weekend, little sister! Love, Mi-chan.  
  
___  
  
As Kojirou read the recently arrived messages, a grin slashed through his face. The reply he sent was a little predictable.  
  
___  
  
Eiri-chan, I believe quite a few gods out there like you, y'know...  
  
Either a few gods or a couple of sisters ^_~  
  
___  
  
Kojirou-kun, this weekend is going to be wonderful... and then a nice long winter break... ah, wonderful is life ^_^  
  
___  
  
...you just reminded me of something... was any clothing of yours missing when you got home? Cause if that's the case, the weekend's gonna be more wonderful than any of us can imagine...  
  
I envy Adam... for he's gonna find out about any tattoos you might have.  
  
___  
  
Kojirou bit his lips to suppress a giggle.  
  
___  
  
I can almost picture your sad face...  
  
"Eiri-chan, what's wrong?"  
  
"You... are doing laundry..."  
  
And just one tattoo? That's a bit of a waste...  
  
___  
  
I'm only 16 and my father has only been dead for 2 years. Give me some time for independence!  
  
___  
  
You need MORE time?... I just figure your body is the perfect frame for any tattoo or scar... just like mine.  
  
Oh, and you sounded like you didn't like your father at all, you know...  
  
___  
  
I do... it's just life is a lot different without him... everything is completely the opposite... that's the only reason I seem mad at him... he made everything different.  
  
___  
  
You mean you are mad at him because he left you?  
  
___  
  
Wouldn't you be mad if your only parent left you?  
  
___  
  
Well, I'm suspect, cause I never liked my parents to begin with. But suppose onee-chan left me, I wouldn't be mad. Devastated, but not mad.  
  
___  
  
Anger sets in later.  
  
___  
  
But why?  
  
___  
  
I guess a psychologist would know... but I don't know.  
  
___  
  
Alright... and if you don't want to talk about that, that's fine with me. On a sidenote, I really think we should be looking at the blackboard once in a while...  
  
___  
  
Ah, so boring. Good thing today is Friday... and before a break...  
  
___  
  
Specifically, before your opportunity to shack up with Adam...  
  
Saa, you didn't answer me. What did you think of the pictures?  
  
___  
  
Eiri thought for a moment and then slowly tapped the screen.  
  
___  
  
You're a weird, weird boy, Kojirou-kun ^_^  
  
But very skilled!  
  
___  
  
She typed quickly.  
  
___  
  
Thanks, dear... for both "weird" and "skilled" ^_~ ...ano, do you think you can pass me my scrapbook back without anyone noticing?  
  
___  
  
Eiri looked over to Caomei and motioned to the sketchbook that sat in the girl's lap. Caomei handed it over as the teacher looked away, and Eiri handed it fluidly to Kojirou whilst the teacher droned on in mathematics lessons.  
  
___  
  
Kojirou whispered his thanks as he got his scrapbook back. "I can't live without it, you know..."  
  
"I know the feeling." Eiri whispered back.  
  
Kojirou figured it was better to get back on NAVI mode.  
  
___  
  
You know, what you said about my drawings got me quite inspired... expect more weirdness soon...  
  
___  
  
Should I be scared?  
  
___  
  
Not really... but I'd be happy if you were excited ^_^;  
  
___  
  
Kojirou closed his eyes as he slowed down his breathing. Without even opening them, he got a set of pencils from his purse. Only then he opened his eyes, and his pencil strokes seemed like slashes through the paper. In few minutes, a sketch of a large classroom filled with blindfolded, gagged students started to form.  
  
After a while, it was ready. Kojirou handed the scrapbook back to Eiri, obviously wanting her evaluation.  
  
She wrote softly and in tiny text at the bottom.  
  
___  
  
I wish I was blindfolded and didn't have to watch her teach.  
  
___  
  
She handed it back to Kojirou and grinned slightly. Kojirou let out a short laugh as he read Eiri's comment. It made a lot of sense.  
  
He tapped the answer in his NAVI.  
  
___  
  
Well... suppose we were all literally blindfolded, class would be much more peaceful than it is now...  
  
___  
  
Quite.  
  
___  
  
I think right now the nice thing to say is that I pity the poor blindfolded students, having their minds manipulated by school... but honestly I don't care ^_^  
  
___  
  
I see... interesting.  
  
___  
  
I guess so... let's say my life style leads to interesting mind images...  
  
___  
  
***  
  
Tak was making his own unique way to school... his mind was concentrating on the cover of One More Time that the huge teenager and his brother had been working on...  
  
/...well... I lay down the male voice... got the rumbling bass down pat... now... what voice will Nakita use... well... since we're doing this as an anniversary thing... I wonder if he can reproduce Hime's voice.../  
  
Perhaps no one will ever know why Tak chose that particular moment to interrupt his musings and look up....  
  
Few things could rock the huge teenager back on his heels...  
  
...seeing his long presumed dead identical twin was one of them...  
  
Up ahead, off in a side street... a much younger and smaller version of Tak stood and stared vacantly...  
  
Tak broke into a full sprint... moving as fast as his legs would carry him... using his mass to knock people aside left right and center... when he had built up sufficient momentum... people just bounced off him...  
  
Upon reaching the side street... there was no one there...  
  
/What should I have expected... he's been dead for years.../  
  
Tak continued on his way... ignoring the glares he was getting...  
  
As Tak got far enough away... the boy appeared again...  
  
/Why does he cling to this illusion so suddenly/  
  
After boarding the subway... and realizing he would be late... Tak did something out of the ordinary... Montgomery Scott would have been proud...  
  
He bodydumped...  
  
***  
  
A resigned mutter of "Fuck dis shit" preceded a large, loud, resounding CRASH at the back of the classroom. Kojirou had his thoughts interrupted by a loud sound seemingly right from the back of his head. As he turned to see what had caused it, he found the Takman lying on the floor...  
  
"Not again..."  
  
"And I say again for the record... fuck dis shit. Wait a minute... last I checked it was eight thirty..."  
  
/That makes two classes disturbed by bodydumps.../  
  
Eiri didn't even bother to look back and simply put her forehead against one of her hands.  
  
___  
  
The green haired giant is back, Eiri-chan...  
  
___  
  
Thanks to the intricacies of the Wired protocol... a stream of coarse language flowed across Eiri's screen... As the rough words flashed across the screen, Eiri looked up to glare at Kojirou, almost shoving the NAVI in his face.  
  
The stream of coarse English and gutter Japanese continued...  
  
Kojirou raised his eyebrow. That was recognizable speech. "That's not me, but Tak saying it."  
  
Because of a raging flow of coarse words through their NAVIs, the classroom was now full of startled, blushing students. As their teacher tried to calm everyone down, she walked up to Tak. "Excuse me young man, can you tell me what's going on?"  
  
Tak stood up... and promptly banged his head on a fixture...  
  
"Does he ever use a door?" hissed Eiri to Kojirou.  
  
"Only once, as far as I know."  
  
"No, actually... I can't. Last thing I remember was heading for school on the subway."  
  
"And you just appeared here afterwards?" she answered with a skeptical look.  
  
"Well... you saw what happened..."  
  
The teacher just nodded in response.  
  
"Hmmm... so, do you belong in this classroom?"  
  
"I think I'm a junior... gotta go find my class..."  
  
Tak staggered out, throwing a "hi cuz" to Lain on the way....  
  
"Yukawa-san." the teacher gestured to Aya. "Can you lead him to his classroom?"  
  
The class rep promptly obeyed, leaving right after Tak. Pity no one noticed the melancholy green haired boy...  
  
A new message surfaced in Eiri's NAVI.  
  
____  
  
Please permit me to apologize for his behavior and language.  
  
____  
  
She stared oddly at the screen, then looked around the room, seeking the source of the odd message.  
  
____  
  
You will not see me, for I am not in the room.  
  
____  
  
"Where are you..." Eiri whispered, almost inaudibly.  
  
____  
  
If I told you I would not be believed.  
  
____  
  
Kojirou turned back to Eiri as her soft breath touched the back of his head. "Is something wrong, dear?"  
  
Eiri looked at the NAVI screen for a bit longer, then turned over the small machine to look at Kojirou. "Just some random messages." Eiri murmured in response.  
  
____  
  
The signal to noise ratio is much higher than for random static.  
  
____  
  
"Hmm... I see. And did you say something?"  
  
"I didn't have to type back... somehow the person knew what I was doing..."  
  
___  
  
Will you leave them out of it? Playing with my head... sure... we both went through the same thing... but leave them out of it. They weren't at ground zero.  
  
___  
  
"Eh? That means someone is watching you... weird... can I see it?" Kojirou turned back to the blackboard as soon as he finished the sentence.  
  
___  
  
They cling to the illusion as stubbornly as you do. I see no reason to desist.  
  
___  
  
What the hell is this? Who are you?  
  
___  
  
Him or me?  
  
___  
  
I guess... both. I don't know much about the boy who falls through ceilings  
  
___  
  
When I was still corporeal, he was my identical twin brother.  
  
____  
  
Eiri stared at the screen for a bit and then typed quickly.  
  
___  
  
Three words: What the fuck?  
  
___  
  
What is so shocking?  
  
____  
  
Uh... you just told her you don't have a physical body maybe?  
  
___  
  
An unnecessary encumbrance.  
  
___ 


	5. Layer 5 : Voices

As the ending bell rang, hundreds of students began rushing out of the buildings of the school. Snow was falling softly in the outdoors, both a blessing and a horror to the Tokyo people. The snow was already accumulating on the roadways, as the weather had been so freezing cold lately. After a few minutes, the courtyard of the school was nearly empty. With a creak, the door of the center building slowly opened and the redheaded Eiri walked out, talking to the taller Caomei. As they exited, Caomei's face grew happy. A black-haired woman in a long winter coat who Eiri knew only as "muqin" walked up to the girls and grabbed Caomei happily.  
  
"Muqin! Nin hao ma?" said Eiri excitedly to the tall woman.  
  
"Hen hao, Eiri-chan. Ni ne?" said Caomei's muqin.  
  
"I'm wonderful." Eiri said to her.  
  
Caomei kept a firm grasp on her mother, but held one hand up to wave good- by to Eiri. Eiri waved back and watched them walk to Muqin's car.  
  
"Eiri-chan, would you like a ride to your house?" said Muqin.  
  
"Mei guanxi, bu shi. I love the snow and shall enjoy it on my way home."  
  
"Okay. Have a wonderful holiday!"  
  
"Good-by!"  
  
Eiri watched the two drive away. She stood in the snow for a few minutes then started walking towards her house. As she walked, her school bag slung over her shoulder, the snow grew increasingly harder. The temperature kept dropping, leading to her putting on cashmere-leather gloves and searching frantically for a hat in her bag. It wasn't long until she realized her folly in choosing to not ride home with the Hsu's... the snow was rapidly becoming a blizzard.  
  
Exasperated, Eiri stopped and sat in a bus stop box. The plastic sides of the stop gave her no warmth, but the shielding from the snow was enough to keep her happy. Minutes passed quickly, and by the LCD display on her NAVI, it had been forty-five minutes since she left school. She sighed loudly and cursed herself for even trying to walk home. Suddenly, she heard the whirring of a small engine. As a black Vespa pulled up to the bus stop, Eiri beamed.  
  
"Mr. Langley!" she screamed happily.  
  
"You had me worried, Eiri. Your sister told me you usually get home about twenty minutes after school!" he said with mock seriousness. He took off his helmet and looked at Eiri with bright grey eyes.  
  
The helmet had held in his sweat, so his hair glimmered in the odd half- light that occurs on snowy days. The spikes had lost their gel, and therefore had created a semi-curly mess on his head. His smile was radiantly handsome, perfectly framed by the light tan of his face. He tossed her a helmet and patted the seat behind him.  
  
"My saviour." Eiri said to him as he placed his own helmet on.  
  
"I expect a good dinner from you, woman." Adam said with his, again, false severity.  
  
Eiri sat down behind him on the moped. She leaned forward, pressing against him as much as she could. Her hands met very close to his lap, still covered with cashmere gloves. Her head rested on his upper back. His warmth was a welcome respite from the cold of the winter day. Eiri's eyes closed as the engine revved up, as she was finally comfortable. Her hands squeezed around his waist as the Vespa started forward. Adam heard a small sigh come from Eiri and he tried his best to look back at her, to no avail. She was so close to him that it almost seemed as though no one was behind him.  
  
It was only about a fifteen minute drive to get back to the Kojirou-dubbed Garden of Eden. By the time that they reached there, though, Eiri had fallen asleep against Adam. Adam pulled the Vespa up to under the thatched porch of the house, then removed his own helmet. With one hand, he released Eiri's grasp of his waist and held on to one of her leather-clad hands. After removing her helmet, Adam picked up the short girl and took her inside the house, remembering to remove both his shoes and hers.  
  
He laid her on the couch in the main living room. Carefully, he removed her gloves and admired her soft, pale hands. The raspberry nail-polish on her nails had chipped finely at the tips. He laid her hands down by her sides then started unbuttoning her wool coat. In short time, he had taken the coat off and laid it on the floor beside her. After finishing with taking off her winter gear, he released her hair from the buns on top of her head. The shiny auburn hair fell down in cascades, glimmering across her chest and falling off of the couch, almost touching the floor. He ran a large hand over the top of her head and then stood up.  
  
And thus he stood for a few silent moments. The scene was perfect. From where he was standing, he could look out of the completely windows room of Eiri's temple, with the pure white snow falling, making the outside world virgin and new. The light from the windows shone in on the other virgin, Eiri Tsugoyaki, making her hair shine like silk and the pink on her pale cheeks glow. Suddenly, he became aware of the fluttering of her eyes. Slowly, the eyelids opened to reveal glimmering violet and navy blue eyes. She smiled, but did not speak.  
  
Gradually, she sat up and looked at him. He knelt down to gaze into her eyes. Unexpectedly, Eiri leaned forward and stopped her face about half-an- inch from his. Her eyes closed, and after a half-whisper of 'Adam,' she continued her leaning and placed her lips on his. After a brief pause of surprise, Adam accepted the kiss and kissed her sensuously back. Eiri's arms held around him once more, but this time she put one on the back of his head and the base of his neck. Soon, his arms were wrapped around her svelte waist, their kisses growing faster and harder.  
  
Then, a cat appeared out of the blue and landed on Eiri's head. The couple broke the kiss and both giggled uncomfortably. Eiri took the kitten off of her head and lectured it before giving it a little peck on the lips and sending it on its way to be with the other cats. Adam and Eiri looked at each other for a few silent moments.  
  
"I'll go ahead and prepare dinner." Eiri murmured in a slightly lethargic voice.  
  
He simply nodded and stood. She held up nearly-white hands, a sign that she wished to he helped up. His hands grabbed hers and pulled her up into strong arms. Eiri stayed curled against him for a second and then pushed away softly. His eyes followed her to the kitchen, and when she was out of sight, he decided to follow her.  
  
***  
  
Kojirou had his MP3 player on Grand Pain as he happily skipped out of his classroom. He was free, if just for a while. And it was snowing. He had learned to love it when it snowed... a long, long time ago...  
  
When they would lock him outside the house, and let the snow fall on him. At first he pretended the snow flakes were petals, then as rage gathered in his heart, the petals turned into droplets of blood... and then again into snowflakes... when he started enjoying their cold touch... burning his skin... stealing his breath...  
  
Kojirou shed a lonely tear for that memory. He didn't know what had caused it, but it made him happy. Most things did. He shook his head slowly, then took a long breath. Raising his head, the kid headed out humming along with Ain't Afraid To Die.  
  
The streets seemed a lot larger than they really were, specially because they were not as crowded as usual, what with the raging blizzard. He found an almost empty kissaten, and settled down there for a while. Inside the restroom, Kojirou opened up his purse, taking from it a skirt matching the uniform, plus loose socks and shoes to go with his cosplay. He even took the time to braid his hair. If his looks were naturally feminine, this time he could be very well mistaken for any girl in his school... or a prostitute, since school time was over. A wide grin slashed his face. This wasn't something he did on a regular basis, but Kojirou was exceptionally happy that day. A sick sense of humor? Definately.  
  
***  
  
As seemed to be the general fashion among the students... Tak buggered off.  
  
Despite the snow falling and because of the rugged individualist that he was, he decided to walk home.  
  
On his way home... he played the draft cover of One More Time that was stored in the NAVI that was in his left arm... routing directly to his auditory nerve... making him a connoisseur of the highest, most discriminating order...  
  
And... true to form of such picky people... he wasn't satisfied with the draft cover.  
  
And Hime's voice was so damn HARD to synthesize on the quiet... it had a certain similarity to Aeon Flux's voice... but still Tak was having no luck...  
  
Of course, with this being a surprise present an' all... he couldn't just ASK Hime to sing some lyrics...  
  
___  
  
Why do you cling to the illusion so stubbornly?  
  
___  
  
/You're supposed to be dead. Start acting like it./  
  
***  
  
Kojirou had been walking through the large mall for quite a long time. His ever watchful eyes caught the luscious looks of salarymen and shy schoolboys over him. Sometimes, when he realized someone was following him, Kojirou would stop, adjust his skirt, slowly rubbing his legs.  
  
/Heheheh... can't blame all these men... I'd be raging if I saw myself like this... ... ... ... come to think of it, a bra and some girlish accessories are what's missing to render this cosplay perfect.../  
  
His musings were interrupted by a tall, muscular man Kojirou assumed to be in his twenties. He had touched his shoulder, and Kojirou turned his head back slowly, blinking as cutely and innocently as he could. Shivering in anxiety, the man clumsily tried to explain what he wanted from Kojirou, as if he didn't know already.  
  
/Pervert... such a little girl.../ "I'm sorry, but I'm not interested. Ja ne?" Kojirou blew him a kiss before quickly leaving the guy behind.  
  
The scene repeated itself quite a few times, with some variations, until Kojirou figured it was time to get back home. In the back of his mind, he kind of wanted someone to feel him while in the subway... so that he'd be able to scream.  
  
***  
  
"Onee-chan, I'm home..."  
  
"I'm in my bedroom, Kojirou." Hime's voice sounded through the intercom.  
  
The boy made his way up, eager to show off how lovely he was.  
  
"So... beautiful..." Hime would have said that louder, but with her breath stolen all she could manage was a whisper.  
  
"I thought you'd like it." Kojirou replied happily as he turned around and posed. He knew he was rushing Hime's blood into overdrive.  
  
"You know... you need a name to go with that look. Do you have one in mind, already?"  
  
"Tee-hee! Not really... but yeaown, someone might ask my name..."  
  
"Then..." Hime got down on your knees, looking deeply into his eyes. "I'll call you Kei."  
  
Kojirou smiled sweetly. He would have thanked his sister, but the next thing he knew she had her lips locked against his. He accepted and retributed the kiss, closing his eyes and wrapping his arms around her waist.  
  
Hime led Kei to her bed, still not breaking the kiss. She ran her hands through the shorter girl's body, making both shiver in pleasure. As Hime lowered her head to suck her nipples, Kei softly fondled her hair, her other hand rubbing Hime's back, which sent jolts of electricity through her spine.  
  
***  
  
At work, Nakita was buried under a pile and a half of paperwork... as the green haired doctor continued pen scratching... he convinced himself those could wait... finishing up one particularly soul-destroying piece of paperwork... he decided to leave for the day...  
  
As was customary... Nakita unlocked the front door and didn't bother announcing his arrival... not that it would have made half a difference at the moment.  
  
Removing his shoes... he headed up to Hime's room... eyebrow raised at the sounds issuing from within... inside said room, two girls drove each other over their limits of pleasure. Nakita could have well came inside leading a marching band and remain unnoticed.  
  
Scanning the scene with characteristic savior faire, he saw what seemed to be a girl in Kojirou's school's uniform, knelt down next to Hime's bed, orally pleasuring the latter, who had her body shaking with one of countless orgasms.  
  
Nakita shut up, stayed hidden and kept watching... after what seemed like an eternity at watch, Nakita could see Hime sitting up from her bed. She moved slowly, as the previous love making session had her near exhaustion. The other, much smaller girl crawled up to look directly into Hime's eyes, finding exactly what she was looking for, satisfaction and love. After a slight peck on her lips, she got out of the bed, trying to lick her own lips clean of Hime's love juices.  
  
Nakita switched to a voice more... appropriate... contralto #2... "Looks like you enjoyed yourselves."  
  
Kei looked around the room, as she wasn't still able to identify where the hidden voice had come from. Shrugging, she just answered to nowhere "More like enjoyed each other... where are you, Nakita?"  
  
"Kojirou... if you're going to cross dress... develop a voice to go with it."  
  
Kojirou scratched the back of his head... "Yeaown, I know... mine is far, far away from perfect..."  
  
"Don't be discouraged... it takes at least six months of work per voice."  
  
"Nah, I'm not discouraged... only the first time I cosplay anyway..."  
  
"Least you got enough curves to do so. Ah well... I'll leave you two to clean up. I'm gonna have something to drink."  
  
"Thanks, Nakita... and sorry for the vain fit, but it's not just enough curves, it's the perfect form. I got the right body to provoke surges of lust in any pedophile salaryman or the like..."  
  
As he headed down, the pair could hear him say "So I gotta teach you kickboxing and how to talk in a real female voice?"  
  
Kojirou would have said something, but he figured Nakita already knew the answer. Instead, he got back to his sister's bed, resting his head on her lap while he waited for her to become able to sit up again.  
  
Nakita grabbed a carafe of water, three plastic glasses and headed back up. Back at Hime's room, Kojirou was finishing setting up the bed while Hime was still regaining her strength with a cold bath. As he entered, Kojirou stopped for a second to welcome Nakita back.  
  
"Hoe, you brought us water. How kind!"  
  
Nakita shut up, set the glasses down and started pouring. When two of the glasses were full, Kojirou grabbed one and went to take it to Hime in the bathroom.  
  
Hmm... for the sound Nakita heard, she had just fainted... Nakita wanted to ask a few questions... but kept quiet.  
  
After a few seconds, Kojirou came back, still with the glass in his hand. "Onee-chan is asleep right now... so unless you have other plans for her, I think we better wait downstairs..."  
  
Nakita shrugged and, grabbing the carafe and his glass, headed downstairs. Kojirou had waited for Nakita to say it, but as he was too curious by now, he just asked. "So, what did you think of the cosplay?"  
  
"How sugar coated do you want it?"  
  
"Hmmm... very sugar coated." Kojirou answered with a grin.  
  
"Convincing... until you spoke."  
  
"No, forget the voice... I mean just the looks."  
  
"That was convincing."  
  
"So much for a compliment, Nakita... I thought you'd say I look lovely or something like it."  
  
Nakita slapped his hand against his forehead. "Open mouth, insert foot."  
  
Kojirou laughed in response. "Heh, don't worry... I know you're just too overwhelmed for words."  
  
"We're all a bundle of surprises... some are bigger bundles than others."  
  
"I take it you learned that from here?"  
  
"Among other places..."  
  
"Ah... I should have figured it..." Kojirou answered with a large grin.  
  
"Starting when Tak had an identical twin brother."  
  
"Hm? How was it?"  
  
"Those pair... sigh... the shit they got away with..."  
  
"Now you got me curious... examples?... if we're wandering into bad memories just say it..."  
  
"Nah... I'll have to talk about it sometime... might as well be now..."  
  
Kojirou smiled at him. "Then start."  
  
"Well... I might as well start with my family situation..."  
  
"First up... I have, or had, a few siblings... being the third of eight. Not including the two stillbirths."  
  
"Hmmm... sounds like heavy stuff..."  
  
"Two older sisters that I've never met... myself..."  
  
"And? ..."  
  
"A twin brother... now dead... two brothers spaced two years apart.... then Tak and Kannai... I was a triplet.. up until an hour before I was born. As was Tak... I was half the cause of one of the stillbirths..." Nakita started to shake...  
  
Kojirou had seen that before. Trying to hold Nakita now would only make matters worse, so he let him calm down by himself.  
  
Letting himself shake, Nakita continued... "Same thing happened to each set... one stillborn... one died in childhood... and one survives to blame himself." Nakita stopped shaking... stifled a sob... "...thanks... for listening..."  
  
"My pleasure, Nakita. I'm glad you let that out."  
  
His shoulders slumped... "So am I."  
  
Kojirou smiled in response. "You want to keep going?"  
  
"As you can see... I tend to worry about my close relatives."  
  
"Only natural, I guess..."  
  
"Considering by age 18 I had lost four of them..."  
  
"That too."  
  
"Although I still cling to the wild hope that somewhere... Kannai's still alive..."  
  
"Well, how can you know? He might be alive somewhere. I think it would be a waste to go looking... but you might meet again by chance."  
  
"Yeah... he should be easy to spot... there's not many 7 foot plus green haired teens kicking about..."  
  
Kojirou shook his head. "There's ONE of them, Nakita..."  
  
"Well.. Tak was an identical twin..."  
  
"My thoughts exactly. As far as we know, there's just one of said kind of teen around. If you see another one, who else can it be?"  
  
"Yeah..."  
  
"Though... he might be around... without you being able to see him."  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
Then comprehension dawned...  
  
"I mean... just what I said... he might be around, but you still might be unable to see him."  
  
...and he went into what Tak had jokingly dubbed shrink mode.  
  
"Tak has been verifiably subjected to intense psychological stress... he survived... and well... you've seen the bodydump..."  
  
"Yeaown, I have..."  
  
"Well... maybe... Kannai can also dump... but less frequently..."  
  
"Maybe he's still in the process of trying to come back."  
  
"Hope so..."  
  
"You do that..." Kojirou looked down to the ground "...as hope is wall we can do."  
  
Nakita grinned... "Well... game not over..."  
  
"It's only over when you say it. And I know you won't be saying it that soon."  
  
"Well... want to start working on the voice to go with the clothes?"  
  
"Sure enough!"  
  
***  
  
If you've ever been to Japan, you've seen Ayumi Hamasaki. She's the one with her face plastered on billboards, on the sides of buildings, on giant TV screens. The one with the Lemur-like eyes, the "Am I real or a robot?" expression.  
  
//hajimekara sonna mono nakatta no kamo shirenai tanoshikute kanashikute soshite yasashii SUTORII//  
  
And Ayumi's voice flew over the crowd at the Tsubasa, altered so that she'd sound robotic and coupled with a heavy droning beat. Satoshi and Naoko arrived together, now Koneko and Tenshi. Koneko wore tight leather jeans and matching cat-ears and tail, Tenshi with the tightest of miniskirts and plastic angel wings.  
  
//maboroshi to yume o miteita no kamo shirenai amari nimo nagai aida nemuri sugiteta no kamo shirenai//  
  
"Ugh, they're mixing Ayumi." Koneko grumbled, scratching an itch inside his bright yellow vest. "Can't stand her."  
  
"Yeah, whatever. I'm gonna go find Shingo, find out when we're gonna be mixing." Tenshi turned, white-sprayed hair flying in an elegant half circle, and disappeared into the crowd.  
  
//aoi sora ni natsu no nioi okanjiru kisetsu ni haomoide shite iru yokogao//  
  
Koneko had a habit of stuffing the tip of his strap-on tail in his mouth and chewing, which he had already proceeded to do. He found a booth to the side and scanned the crowd.  
  
Ah, there was Canvas Jacket, the one dealer who always sold Accella and its more dangerous brethren at a reasonably low price. And then there was Yumi, always the oldest at the club at her thirty-five years, loose breasts sagging underneath see-through blouses. And then... who... was that?  
  
//machi no keshiki yugami hajimete SUNGLASSES sagashita subete no iro nakusu tame ni//  
  
"I CAN'T believe YOU'RE here!" Tenshi growled fiercely. She'd canceled a night out with friends so as not to lose her job; and there was Tatsumi, the DJ she was standing in for, splayed out on a couch with his lips and legs entangled with a boy in middle school.  
  
Tatsumi looked up from his prey and glowered at her. "Ah, Tenshi. I figured they'd call you in to cover, you're the only one here that even comes NEAR my talent." He smiled snidely at her; they were not by any terms good friends.  
  
//naritakatta mono nara ohimesama nanka ja nai hoshigatteta mono nara GARASU no kutsu nanka ja nai//  
  
Koneko's eyes were fixated on the girl's form. Twelve, thirteen, but looking so much older, she was beautiful. Normally he'd kick himself for ogling such a little girl, but he was captivated. Long black hair, slender figure, thick eyelashes...  
  
Leather jeans are never comfortable when you're thinking of things like that.  
  
//naritakatta mono sore ha kimi to iru watashi hoshigatteta mono sore ha kimi no hontou ni waratta kao//  
  
"You know, that's disgusting, Tats. He's got to be eight years younger than you." Tenshi gestured toward the boy pinned under Tatsumi's grip.  
  
Tatsumi didn't look up at her, but he broke lip contact with the boy for just a moment. "Dear, Satoshi's four years younger than I and one younger than you, and that's not stopping either of us, hmm?"  
  
"Satoshi and I haven't done anything like that yet!!" She shouted, her cheeks red. Then she caught herself. "...What do you mean, it hasn't stopped you?"  
  
//kyou no sora ni natsu no nioi to kaze ga toori nukete daijoubu datte unazuita//  
  
"That's Kei. It's her first time here." A voice quipped next to Koneko. "She's.... a lot more than you'd expect."  
  
Koneko turned from Kei and stared at the small girl. Eleven, twelve, with bright pink hair and large glasses. She wore many bracelets and necklaces, a pacifier around her neck. Her shirt read 'Wired'. "Who're you?"  
  
"An echo from your past, a remembrance of your childhood days." The girl smirked. "...sounds like a fuckin' anime, huh? I know what happened to your parents, I know Primus, and I know you, Satoshi."  
  
//moshimo futari hanashiteta you naunmei ga aru nara doko ka demata deaeru kara//  
  
Tenshi's hand gripped, her nails almost piercing the skin. It couldn't be true. Tatsumi was such a son of a bitch... she left the pair as Tatsumi's hand snaked down the schoolboy's pants.  
  
She needed to find Koneko.  
  
//lalalalalalai... daijoubu datta unazuita//  
  
"What?? The fuck? How do you- What the-" Koneko's words spilled over each other. The pink haired girl raised a finger to Satoshi's lips.  
  
"Shut up. I can't tell you yet." Satoshi stared agape at the girl. She stood, bangles on her wrists jingling. "Expect some packages in the mail."  
  
She disappeared into the sea of faces, leaving Koneko sitting in the booth, his mouth wide open.  
  
//lalalalalalai... watashi ha totemo tsuyoi kara//  
  
"KONEKO, how many FUCKING times did you sleep with Tatsumi?" Tenshi's voice snapped Koneko out of his thoughts. Her face was red.  
  
Koneko arched an eyebrow. "Twice. You found out about that? You angry?" He asked, a bit of humor showing in his voice.  
  
Tenshi was visibly flustered. "I... of course I'm... angry! Why... fuck didn't you tell me?"  
  
Koneko pulled Tenshi down into the booth with him. "I didn't think it was a big deal. Besides, it's in the past, right?"  
  
Tenshi crossed her arms, her face red. "I suppose..." For once, she was at a loss for words. She'd often pondered over certainty of Satoshi's bisexuality, but she'd never have thought... TATSUMI...  
  
"It's not a big deal. Besides, you're my best friend, right?" Koneko placed a kiss on Tenshi's cheek.  
  
"...friends... yeah..."  
  
***  
  
"First and foremost... the pitch ranges of male and female voices overlap significantly."  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"OK.. the voice I'm talking in is my original voice... a high baritone, just short of tenor."  
  
"Keep going..."  
  
"Most contraltos are actually lower in pitch... I'll demonstrate... but you'll have to be carefully listening to the pitch of my voice..."  
  
"Alright..."  
  
"Ready?"  
  
Kojirou hesitated for a short while... "...yeaown."  
  
"Most contralto voices are at least an octave lower..." as he talked, Nakita's voice changed to the first contralto that he had developed. By the look on Kojirou's face... he had gotten his point across.  
  
"Still serious about developing a voice to match?"  
  
"Sure! Keep going!"  
  
"Well.. as you displayed earlier... what gives most cross dressers away is the voice... mainly the lower harmonics generated by the male larynx."  
  
Kojirou smiled in response. "So, how do we fix that?"  
  
"Train yourself to only use the lower half of your voicebox."  
  
While Nakita received no vocal response to that, the look on Kojirou's face was a good sign that he had no idea how to do it.  
  
"Hmm... try talking in a falsetto..."  
  
"Ahn... alright..." sure enough the kid wouldn't make some mock old lady voice. Instead, he tried to sing like Isshi. The result was as far away as possible from what Kojirou wanted. While his look displayed some disgust, he wasn't giving up so soon.  
  
Nakita stifled a giggle... but the broad grin remained... "Now press two fingers lightly against the upper part of your voicebox..."  
  
"Ahn..." Kojirou felt his own neck for some seconds, before settling for one spot. "Like this, ne?"  
  
"Surprise surprise... you just spoke in a rough soprano..."  
  
"Did? "Well... if you're saying it..."  
  
"Now the idea is to have said voice, clean it up a bit and not need the fingers..."  
  
"Hmm... alright... how?"  
  
"You willing to put in at least an hour of practice per day for six months?" 


	6. Layer 6: Virgins

It was silent around the Mansion, though the lights were on, and it was clear that it was inhabited. Despite this, the building was intimidating, and it was night, so Yousuke shivered slightly upon entering the premise. He shrugged and sighed, sending a plume of steam into the violet winter sky. The business card in his hand was detailed in its instructions, though, and the letter he carried made it clear that he was where he wanted to be.  
  
Gothic and ornate, the Mansion looked like a place you would need a reservation for. A couple of stories, wrought iron, and irregular design, it was very impressive. Silently, he wondered if the owners had been informed of his impending arrival, but he hadn't bothered to find out.  
  
Walking up to the door, he wondered if he should at least knock, but he didn't know if that was appropriate. Squaring his shoulders, he instead pushed the door open and stepped in, prepared to apologize if he had to. What he saw inside was just what he had expected considering the outside. Ornate and exquisite, almost baroque.  
  
Paintings hung upon the walls, and people of all types occasionally walked up or down staircases or nearby halls. Instead he milled around hopelessly, hoping to find someone in charge.  
  
Yousuke's wandering was interrupted as he spotted two people clad in leather and chain attires, staring at him, maybe amused at his confusion. On a closer look, he realized they looked exactly alike. One of them started talking, which the other followed.  
  
"Excuse us..."  
  
"...you seem lost."  
  
He shrugged uncomfortably, not knowing, all of a sudden, quite what he was doing here. Taking a prompt from the card he held in his hand, he spoke back after an awkward moment of silence.  
  
"Yeah, I think I'm looking for someone in charge." he said.  
  
"Hm... you could speak to Hime-sama..."  
  
"...but we don't believe she's free to talk right now."  
  
"If you don't mind waiting..."  
  
"...please, make yourself comfortable."  
  
With short gestures, the... twins? ...prompted Yousuke to follow them.  
  
Shrugging a second time, he followed. The whole place seemed strange to him, it was definitely not a place he would normally hang out at. If he were to sum it up in once word, it would be 'kinky', but that one word really wouldn't do it justice.  
  
He was taken to a dark room, illuminated only by dim red lights. His guides led him to a large, comfortable chair, and left without saying a word.  
  
...maybe it was just Yousuke's impression, but he could swear they had locked the door behind them.  
  
He rolled his eyes and grimaced. This place wasn't his kind of thing, and he felt out of place just by being here. Checking his watch, he settled into the chair and propped one leg up against the other. Lingering doubts about the validity of his excursion here popped up in his head again, but he pushed them down. Instead, he just glared at a wall.  
  
An eternity later, a click confirmed his suspicions. The door opened slowly, but just after a few moments someone came in. A child, wearing a white cape over a blood stained white, long sleeved shirt and torn black vinyl pants. The hair was styled wickedly, seemingly thoroughly worked on to look like a raging, chaotic mass. The kid just stared at Yousuke with an inquiring look. He wanted to stare back, but held himself in check. Instead he rose, and bowed politely to the child.  
  
"My name is Yousuke Genji, I'm looking for the owner of this establishment, could you help me?"  
  
Bowing back at the visitor, the kid introduced himself.  
  
"I'm Kojirou... one of the owners, you could say. My sister is the other, but she won't be joining us right now."  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry!" started Yousuke. Was this kid the owner? He seemed entirely too young to even be let inside, much less own the place. He knew his eyes went wide, he hoped that the kid would forgive him. He bowed again.  
  
"It's just that I'm looking for someone, and I don't think I'd be able to find my way around without help."  
  
"Oh, don't apologize, it's alright. Who would you be looking for?"  
  
Yousuke squinted thoughtfully at the card. His memory had decided to go on leave, it seemed, deserting him when he needed it most. The card was no help, surprisingly enough. He could see no name emblazoned on the now blank card. Instead, he was left to stutter helplessly.  
  
"Um... er... well then..."  
  
Kojirou stared at the boy for a while. Both were interrupted as the door opened again, and in came the most beautiful woman Yousuke would ever see. How she was able to walk with ropes wrapped all over her, he could only imagine.  
  
"This is my sister, Hime. Onee-chan, this is Yousuke Genji. He says he's looking for someone."  
  
Yousuke bowed again, unhappy that his mission had simply become a failure, and he felt quite embarrassed for wasting time. "I know it was a doctor, someone leading in the area of bio-mechanical engineering. A friend of my professor, I received this card I thought was from him so that I could ask him some questions. Now the card's blank, and I forgot his name."  
  
Hime just stared back for a while. Turning to her brother, she opened her mouth to ask a question, but Kojirou anticipated it.  
  
"I can't imagine who he's talking about."  
  
She turned back to Yousuke. "Who is your professor?"  
  
"Takeshi-sensei." Yousuke grimaced unhappily.  
  
"And you said the card is now blank?"  
  
"Yes, that's right. Here, see for yourself!" he exclaimed, happy to have his position understood. He handed the business card out, both sides visibly blank of writing.  
  
Hime rubbed her temple. "I'm very sorry, but we can't help you right now."  
  
"No, maybe we can, sis." Kojirou intervened. "Do you know your professor's phone number by heart?"  
  
"Hm, yes, this might help." the woman agreed.  
  
Slowly, Yousuke shook his head. "No, I think that I've been the victim of a prank. I'm sorry I wasted your time. Before I go, do you sell tea here? I'm pretty thirsty, and I'd like to get something to drink before I go."  
  
Hime chuckled slightly "Sell? No, please, you're a guest. Kojirou, can you follow him to the kitchen?"  
  
"Actually not. I have a session in a few minutes."  
  
"Oh, whatever you would feel more comfortable with. You're not both busy are you?" he asked.  
  
"Oh, no. Come with me." Hime answered, opening the door.  
  
Kojirou went out of the room, disappearing into the bizarre labyrinth that was the Mansion. Hime gestured for Yousuke to follow her.  
  
"That's very kind of you, really." said Yousuke, as he followed the damsel. "It's quite a place you run here." followed, "Pretty complex. It must take a lot of effort."  
  
"Indeed it does. But the pleasure that we all take from it is worth every effort."  
  
It took a small miracle to stop Yousuke from laughing at that. Instead, he just smiled at the irony.  
  
"I myself am a student a Tokyo University, born and raised here, so to speak. Did you know I've never even heard of this place?"  
  
"Not many have... except for the people who live nearby, and the likes of me and Kojirou, few know about this place."  
  
Yousuke nodded knowingly. The walk was taking longer than he thought, but he didn't mind. Even though the people were strange, the architecture was incredible. It seemed a little surreal, which he presumed was the point.  
  
"It does seem like a good place to send a guy like me for a joke then. My friends, they sure have a sense of humor. It hasn't been a bad visit though, you've been very kind."  
  
"Thank you." she answered with a smile. "Here is the kitchen." she turned to a plain looking door. "You can help yourself."  
  
He walked in cautiously, not as if sensing a trap, but so as not to seem rude. Instead, he looked around curiously, sure he would quickly spot a tea bag or can, or something resembling coffee.  
  
"There's cold tea in the fridge... or you can make your own." Hime said pointing to a drawer Yousuke assumed to be where the tea was kept.  
  
He smiled in acknowledgement, and moved toward the drawer. "Do you want some?" he asked "I can make a pretty good pot of tea. At least my friends and me think so. When you stay up for nights on ends, you get good at making stuff like tea and coffee." that last bit was said with a playful grin. He was feeling more at home, even if that home was strange.  
  
"Yes, thank you!" Hime answered cheerfully. "I suppose university students need this sort of knowledge."  
  
He laughed as he made the tea, and much quicker then normal, it was ready. Yousuke really did know what he was doing as far as tea went. "It's true, when we don't drink soda, or pre-made brands. Sometimes it's nice to drink something you made, I think."  
  
Hime giggled in response. "I suppose... after all, your mother isn't available..."  
  
"That's right! Have to take care of myself!" said Yousuke smiling, setting down two cups steaming with tea and the teapot. He found sugar and the rest, and set it down for Hime, but didn't touch it himself, preferring the tea without it. "Still, I miss home sometimes. Or at least clean laundry!" he said with a wry grin. He blew steam off the top of his cup, and sipped a bit.  
  
Hime licked her lips, blowing her own tea before sipping it. Some moments of silence, then she smiled happily. "Your friends are right, Yousuke-kun! You do know how to make good tea."  
  
"Thank you very much." he said. "I'm glad to be of service." as he said that, though, he spilt a bit of the hot tea on his hand. Luckily, the cup wasn't high. Simply set down, a bit of tea sloshed over the lip, but no travesty occurred. Instead, he brought his hand up to his lips to blow on, exposing a nasty looking scar running from his hand to his elbow.  
  
The maiden blinked at the sight. "If you don't mind me asking... where did you get this beautiful scar?"  
  
"Beau... what? The scar?" he laughed. "Everyone always thinks it's from something dramatic, like I was angry or depressed. I've even heard the words 'knifefight', but it was just a kitchen accident from back when I was young. My poor mother, she was horrified, but it was no big deal. My doctors were always surprised when it scarred though."  
  
"Hmmm... I'd have attributed it to self injury... it's even a little disappointing that it was a kitchen accident..."  
  
"Not if you get turned on by cooking, as well as knives!" he laughed, and grinned pleasantly. "Anyhow, my life's interesting enough, I think. It's tough being a university student, but I have a very big fear that I'll become all 'salaryman' when I get out. I respect my father, no one can say different, but that's the hardest life I can think of. Wouldn't you agree?"  
  
"Yes, I suppose it is very hard. Makes me wonder why anyone works that way. Not by choice, I suppose."  
  
Yousuke nodded thoughtfully. "I suppose it's depends on your values though." he said into his tea.  
  
"Yeaown, I think... but what values can lead to that? It's sacrificing your freedom..." just then she realized what she was saying. "Ah, please, I mean no disrespect to your father..."  
  
Instead of taking any offense, he just laughed. "I know that's what it must seem like, but I think he takes a great deal of pride in it. By working so hard, he buys his family freedom. He's a good man, I missed him a lot as a child but I see him enough."  
  
"That's good... I hope you find happiness in what you end up working with." Hime answered with a sweet smile that captivated Yousuke.  
  
But only for a second, he smiled back, but just sipped his tea and shrugged. Finally, he looked at his watch and sighed. Finishing his tea quickly, he stood up and brushed off his long coat.  
  
"Well, it's getting pretty late, I think. I've got to study, and my friends are waiting for me." he said.  
  
"I see... talk about your friends, maybe they actually meant for you to know the Mansion... anyway, I'll walk you to the gates." Hime stood up and opened the kitchen door, nodding for Yousuke to cross it.  
  
"That could be it, but normally they just tell me these things." he said with a grin. He walked out the door and bowed politely again. "It was very nice to visit. Perhaps I'll come again soon, and I won't be so clueless!"  
  
"Do you really believe this place can be told about?" she asked with a wink before walking out of the kitchen, closing the door behind her.  
  
When they got to the heavy metal front doors, Hime opened them with surprising ease, leading her guest out. "Bye, Yousuke-kun! Come back when you want, or make a reservation." She gave him the business card back, now with the Mansion's number written on it. How or when she managed to write it, maybe Yousuke would never know.  
  
***  
  
His hazel eyes opened in the dark, like a nocturnal animal, hunting what he had just realized was dinner. The air was stagnant with the scent of a woman... in the shadows of the room he sat up and tried to pierce his gaze around the shadows of the room... no luck.  
  
Sweat slowly dripped from his bare chest and into the blanket wrapped around his lower torso. The young man lowered himself back into the futon again. He swore he'd never get used to how low his altitude was, compared to a bed.  
  
A hand gently crept to his chest, and the body attached to it was soon on his side; breathing softly into his shoulder. He had an epiphany to why he was there, but that didn't matter now.  
  
He turned to face her, and her hand wrapped around him and pulled him close for a kiss. The glow of the moon coming through the window showed her vibrant face and short black hair with red highlights. The woman's delicate lips inched to his ear and whispered "Ta-kun... thank you for spending the night with me... I feel so happy..." He could not reply with anything as joyful as that.  
  
Ta's hands traced lines going down her spine to her refined buttocks; making her arch her back and let out a moan of delight. She grappled on him and shivered even more when he started to give caresses to her breasts with kisses. Then he relaxed and let go of her, "...Mina-chan... I should be getting home. It's getting late." He sat up and wiped the sweat off him.  
  
Mina Ishikawa is a friend he met a month ago. She is the daughter of Taro Ishikawa, a business friend of Tarias' father. They've been hanging out nearly everyday since they've met. She was the one to nickname him Ta. Movies, parks, shopping; Mina had treated him much like a little brother, though she wasn't able to resist his attractiveness and the way he seduced her.  
  
She pouted and scraped his scrotum tenderly, "Aww...come on, Ta-kun... don't leave me here all alone here. I'll call your parents and tell them you're spending the night. I'll tell them I'm tutoring you... please?" her pleading made her look like a child wanting to be pleased on his hands. Tarias sighed and lay back down, "...oh, alright."  
  
Mina's grin spread across her lips as she continued stimulating him.  
  
***  
  
When he entered the kitchen, Eiri had already started chopping a block of tofu for the miso soup. He stepped up behind her and slid his arms around her svelte waist. She continued chopping faithfully, however, until he bent down and started nibbling softly on her ear. At his touch, she felt chills running up and down her spine. Her eyes closed and her face filled with utmost pleasure. She dropped the knife softly on the counter and put a cold hand up against the side of his face, stoking it affectionately. One of his large hands crept up slowly and began massaging her shapely left breast. Both of her nipples hardened into stiff tips, making her moan softly and him twist them tenderly. Suddenly, she turned around and threw her arms around his neck, pulling him down into a kiss. Her tongue thrust forcefully into his mouth, and their tongues mingled lustfully.  
  
All of a sudden, Adam's arms shot out and pushed her away from him. He tugged her blouse off of her head and looked ravishingly at her plump breasts. As he looked, Eiri reached back and unclasped her bra. The lacy brassiere dropped to the ground by his bare feet. The treasure revealed, Adam crouched down and began sucking her tits with the vigour of a newborn baby. She ran her fingers through his hair, raking her nails slighting against his scalp. As he began nibbling, she screamed out in total ecstasy. He continued the licking of her breasts as he reached around and unclasped her skirt. The heavy wool skirt slid hesitantly down her legs, held by the counter he had pressed herself against.  
  
He pulled his face slightly away from her chest for a few halting seconds, flicking his tongue like a snake against her rock-hard nipples. He backed away from her and started to remove his shirt. Eiri watched as muscular, tanned skin was exposed from under the shirt. His muscles flexed ever so slightly as the shirt was pulled over his head and tossed onto the floor. She licked her lips as a look of perversion swept over her face. Like a cat, she jumped over and grabbed the zipper on his pants, releasing his rock shaft from its khaki prison. Even while the pants were still falling to the floor, Eiri tugged his underwear down to his ankles and clasped her mouth around the dick.  
  
She looked so sexy to him just then. Bent down, her creamy skin was even paler in the half-light of the kitchen. Her lacy thong covered almost nothing-it didn't even conceal the fact that she really was a true red head. She seemed to know what she was going, using both her hands and the sucking power of her mouth to bring him to his climax. He panted, reminiscent of a dog, as she began to rake her teeth rhythmically on the hard shaft of his fully attentive penis. She brought one hand around and grabbed his ass, pulling him farther into her mouth. He moaned loudly, both in the slight pain of her soft gnawing and the chills running up and down his spine, sending the fabulous chemical messages to his brain. She stopped, almost as if she knew when it would torture him most, right before he fully climaxed. She looked up at him with darkly evil eyes, her bangs falling in her face. As he looked down at her, she licked her lips. Slowly, she stood, and then removed her panties sensuously. She held them on an index finger, teasing him with them. She flung them against his face and he took them to his nose with the utmost dynamism. The oddly sweet smell of her juices permeated the soft fabric, tingling his nose with their odour.  
  
He looked up from the lace at her naked form. Her legs were slightly apart, and wetness shimmering on the curly hairs of her pubic area. As he looked at her fabulous body, the pressure in his penis grew almost unbearable. He reached out and grabbed her, bringing her against his frame and grinding his groin against her hips. She took advantage of their position and jumped up into his arms. With calculated steps, he walked over to the dining room table and laid her on it.  
  
She slid backwards until she reached the middle of the table. Her fingers curled seductively in the short, fiery red pubic hairs. Laying spread eagle, her hands seemed like the lights guiding a plane to the safety of the gate. He crawled up on the table and looked down at her stunning face, framed by her hair which had spread like a fan under her. He crouched over her, waiting for a sign. When she smiled slightly at him, he grinned and entered her tight pussy.  
  
Her scream was both horrifying and oddly sexy to him. He laid his whole weight on her slim frame, pinning her wrists on the table with his hands whilst he started rocking back and forth with a definite rhythm. Eiri managed to free one of her pinned hands and brought it up to rake her fingers through his hair. She bit her bottom lip until blood ran, and, seeing this, Adam locked his lips over hers, savouring the sweet taste of her blood and the saltiness of her sweat. His lips released hers and he licked from her bottom lip down to the base of her craned neck. She moved her hands to tweak his nipples, sending pulses down his spine and heightening his enjoyment. All at once, he groaned loudly, and, sitting up and pressing against her breasts, he released his cum into her once virgin pussy. After he released his seed, he collapsed lightly onto her. Her arms reached around him and held him close, softly kissing the edge of his ear. Soon, his arms grabbed around her and pulled her even closer. 


	7. Layer 7 : Crossing

Adam walked out of the quiet house early one snowy morning two weeks later. His hair was mussed, and he was wearing his glasses, as he was too lazy to bother with his contacts. He slowly sipped a glass of hot Chai tea. Bending down, he grabbed the morning paper and looked at it in exasperation before returning to the house. He slipped off his boots and put on some old, ragged house slippers that had belonged to Eiri's missing father. The cold of the outside world had chilled him, as he was wearing only an undershirt, boxers, and a silk robe. Walking into the living room, he flung himself onto the couch and started examining the paper. His training in Mandarin Chinese helped him little, and he realized that Eiri would be helpful in deciphering the pictograms, as she had done every day since break.  
  
Unfortunately, she had been sleeping in for the last week. In fact, she had slept in until almost noon every day after going to sleep as early as ten o'clock. This, obviously, had hindered his news reading, but he was starting to learn survival in the world of no translators. Sighing, he pulled out a kanji dictionary and plain Japanese dictionary that Eiri had given him for Christmas. After reading the first sentence, he became aware of rustling in Eiri's bedroom. He stood up and walked to the door, then slid the shoji open. Assuming that he would see her in bed, he was surprised that the bed was empty. Hearing sounds from the bathroom, he walked in there quietly.  
  
Eiri was sitting Japanese-style in front of the toilet. She had one hand placed gingerly on her stomach and the other was moving to her face, which has hidden by her hair. Adam hurried over to her and pushed her hair from her face, revealing a very pale and sickly looking visage. Her skin was glimmering with fresh sweat and her eyes were blank. He rubbed her back softly and pulled her hair back quickly before she started throwing up. Her body shook tremendously, and after she was finished, she rested her chin on the seat. Adam reached over blindly and flushed the toilet, then stood up and wet a washcloth. Eiri's arms lay limply at her sides and she took shuddering breaths.  
  
"Jesus Eiri..." he whispered to her as he bent down to wipe her face with the warm cloth.  
  
She leaned back and laid her head against his shoulder. Her lips were chapped, and in general her entire complexion was pasty.  
  
"I'm fine. I probably just have... food poisoning... or something..." she murmured between deep breaths.  
  
He gathered her in his arms and then stood up. She hadn't eaten much in the last few days, and had noticeably lost weight.  
  
"You can't get food poisoning when you don't eat. I'm going to take you to the hospital, Eiri. You appear to be very sick."  
  
"What do you... know? It's not like you're a doctor... just a med student." Eiri said, smiling slightly as she closed her eyes.  
  
"Yeah, not a doctor..." Adam said with a grimace.  
  
Adam walked out of the bathroom with her curled in his arms. Her hair was not clean, and it had lost its normal sheen. Within seconds, she had fallen asleep. He held her closer and walked out to the garage, where his car which recently arrived from England was sitting. He slowly and carefully put Eiri in the passenger seat of the Z-8 and then he got in the driver's seat.  
  
He backed out of the driveway and drove slowly to the hospital at which he was employed. He worried whether people in his psychological research department would see him and speak to him whilst Eiri was awake, but at her current rate of sleeping, people seeing him would be no problem. When they arrived, he parked in his labelled parking space and grabbed Eiri. Holding her in his arms, he walked into the hospital and arranged for an examination room and a doctor. He sat Eiri in a plushy seat in the waiting room and then sat beside her, holding her hand tightly as she slept.  
  
Adam looked up as the doctor appeared seemingly out of nowhere and asked for Eiri. After helping Eiri up and watching the doctor take her away, Adam decided to check up on things in his side of the hospital. He made his way to the office of his associate and knocked lightly on the door before looking in.  
  
Nakita Iwakura had his feet up on his desk, intently reading something in his hands. He looked up at the door as the knock resounded.  
  
"It's open..."  
  
"Haven't seen you in a few weeks... how are things going with your patient?" said Adam as he stepped in the office.  
  
Nakita waved Adam to a seat.... "Well... Tak seems stable enough..."  
  
Adam sat and put a hand against his face, exasperated. "I think I completely fucked up with my patient..."  
  
"Should 'up with' be deleted from that statement?"  
  
"Well, aren't you good at guessing..." Adam said, groaning.  
  
"Hanging around Hime has that effect on me."  
  
"Well, you and Hime... that's fine... but since my patient doesn't even turn 17 for a month..."  
  
"You're legally in the clear... age of consent in Japan is 14... as a private citizen... as medic-patient... hell... I don't know... as for professional ethics....." Nakita shrugged.  
  
"Oh no no, that's not the worst thing... seeing how she threw up this morning, my teenage patient is pregnant." Adam said, his tone slightly pissed. "Ah, and did I mention that my pay comes from her overprotective older sister?"  
  
Nakita smacked his hand against his forehead... "You're screwed... and not in a good way..."  
  
"It was fun while it lasted..." Adam said, looking blankly into the distance.  
  
"Well... you can bail..... or hang around, weather the storm and play super hang on..."  
  
"Well, she seems like the type to keep secrets... maybe we can just keep this between ourselves for a few... months... or so..." At that point, he just smacked himself in the forehead.  
  
"My point exactly."  
  
"Well... her sister stayed away for all of winter break... and she DOES live in Vermont... maybe she just won't come home." he said hopefully.  
  
"Thought of using a surrogate mother?"  
  
"Somehow, I don't think that Eiri would go for something like that... if she does this, she's going to go all the way through with it."  
  
"So... going to stick around yourself?"  
  
"Yeah, I mean... it's only fair."  
  
"You realise, despite what Eiri says... you're going to be seen as the villain here..."  
  
"Yeah... but if we thought what we did was sacred in some way... that it was okay, then that's all that matters."  
  
"Her sister and mother might not see it that way..."  
  
"Her parents are dead, and I'll just have to find a way to deal with her sister."  
  
"Not expecting a favourable reaction?"  
  
"Not at all. Her sister is one of those emotionally hardened widow mental hospital nurses..."  
  
"And she who pays the piper calls the tune..."  
  
"Eiri is good friends with her sister. Maybe she can tell her. Or maybe Natsumi doesn't have to know that I'm the father." He blinked a few times. "Yes... she doesn't have to know..."  
  
"Well... I can't take the fall.... My little mutation's rendered me stone sterile.. "  
  
"There has to be a classmate... or a neighbor... someone. God, I don't know... this is going to be interesting."  
  
"Hmm... I might be able to find someone... but no guarantees...."  
  
Adam looked down at his watch. "Eiri is probably getting out of the examination room about now..."  
  
"Want some emotional support?"  
  
"Sure, what the hell..."  
  
Adam stood and walked to the door. Nakita extracted himself and followed. As Adam opened the door however, he looked down to see a petite redhead in front of him. In her hand, she was clutching a computer printout. She looked up at him and handed him the paper. Then... she preceded to smack him straight across the face. Feeling pleased with herself, Eiri Tsugoyaki stomped down the hallway.  
  
"Eiri... wait..." he put his hand up, then turned around to look at Nakita. "Well, shit."  
  
"OK... care to cue me in?"  
  
"That is Eiri Tsugoyaki, and apparently she heard part of our conversation..." he said, rubbing his face.  
  
"She ticked about being pregnant or you blabbing?"  
  
"I... don't know..." he looked down at the computer printout that she had shoved in his hand. "Ah... fuck."  
  
"That sounds like an inappropriate curse right now..."  
  
"Great, what do I do now? She's going to get home, find all of my files, get even more pissed... I have to stop her."  
  
"Well... you want me to help? Maybe divert her... explain why you were talking to me?"  
  
"Yes... but what will be our excuse?"  
  
"I'm a shrink. You needed help talking through your feelings for her."  
  
He paused. "Okay... that will work."  
  
"So... you head to your place... I divert Eiri? Or the other way around?"  
  
"That'll work... I'll head home and hide my files, you find her."  
  
"Gotcha." Nakita locked his office and took off at his not inconsiderable top speed.. shouting for security to stop that girl...  
  
Adam ran down the hallway and headed to his car, hoping to hell she didn't get there before he did. He ran past the waiting room without a glance. Eiri sat complacently in the waiting room, sniffling softly. She still had on her pyjamas, which consisted of not-too-warm calf-length pantaloons and a long-sleeved blouse. She couldn't go outside like that, and had just bitch-slapped her ride home. Nakita suddenly skidded into the waiting room, looking for and finding Eiri.  
  
/ Phew... she hasn't left yet... /  
  
Eiri looked up at the man with tears glimmering in her eyes.  
  
/Oh shit... rock... me... hard place.../ "You would be Eiri?"  
  
"Yes... who are you, may I ask?" she murmured softly.  
  
"I'm the shrink he was talking to. Iwakura Nakita."  
  
She narrowed her eyes and looked down at the ground.  
  
"What do you want?" she said through gritted teeth.  
  
"I was helping him talk about the evident depth of feeling he has for you."  
  
Eiri paused, then gripped her hands in front of her, squeezing until the knuckles were white. "Why was he talking to you like a familiar?"  
  
"That wasn't the first session."  
  
Her eyes grew wide and she looked up at him. "What?" A look of horror was cast over her pale face.  
  
"I can't say any more in public without violating the confidence he's placed in me. Should we go somewhere a little more private?"  
  
"So... he wasn't talking about me...?" she said almost inaudibly. She stood, staggering slightly, and looked up at the tall man.  
  
"Where shall we go?"  
  
"Well... you seem to know where my office is..."  
  
She nodded.  
  
When the pair arrived and entered... got comfortable... Nakita continued... "From what I gather... Natsumi.... won't be overjoyed..."  
  
"Ah, yes, the stoic sister," Eiri said dryly. She looked down. "She'll probably make sure that Adam gets put with another English-speaking family in the area."  
  
"One thing... are you two emotionally involved... or is there something more than that?"  
  
"What do you mean? If you are implying that Adam is the father of my child, then you are precisely correct." she said, half-glaring at him.  
  
Nakita's eyes widened... "That's ... news to me..."  
  
Suddenly, there was a soft knocking on the door and Adam came in without waiting for permission. Eiri grasped one hand in the other and gripped with her nails until she drew blood just below her knuckles.  
  
Nakita grabbed Eiri's hands and forced them apart... "Lay off the masochistic impulses for a while..."  
  
Eiri sniffled as the blood ran down her hand and to the ends of her fingers, dripping small dots on the floor.  
  
A loud crash sounded outside.... Nakita swore... "Excuse me... my brother's arrived..."  
  
"Brother...?"  
  
Nakita opened the door and dragged in a huge man with the same color hair as himself... stuffing said man into a corner of the office proved difficult...  
  
"The no-door-using guy..." Eiri said almost to herself.  
  
"You meet him at school?"  
  
"He falls into my classroom almost everyday."  
  
"Yeah... that's Tak..."  
  
"I still haven't figured out how he does that..."  
  
"Is he dead?" she whispered, looking at him fearfully.  
  
Nakita checked... "No... he just banged what he uses for his head when he hit the floor. If he doesn't crack wise when he wakes up... I know something's wrong."  
  
She slid her feet along the ground away from the conked-out Tak, then looked back at Nakita.  
  
"Well.. want to come back another time?"  
  
"I... guess."  
  
Tak chose that moment to wake up...  
  
A contrabass voice sighed... "Nakita... Nakita... you know Hime gets very annoyed if she don't join in..."  
  
At the sound of Tak's voice, Eiri jumped out of her chair and looked down at Tak from afar. The larger, younger brother climbed to his feet as Nakita said, "Well... I told you so..."  
  
Eiri whimpered and closed her eyes as Tak stood.  
  
"Well, Eiri... Adam... when do you want to talk to me next?"  
  
Eiri looked up and saw that she warmth she had leaned against was, in fact, Adam. He grabbed her around the waist.  
  
"We'll come back tomorrow, Dr. Iwakura." said Adam, his eyes narrow with relief.  
  
"OK... see you then..."  
  
Adam pushed Eiri lightly out of the office, then turned his head to mouth 'Thank you' to Nakita. He didn't respond... was busy talking to his brother. Adam closed the door to the office and grabbed Eiri's hand before continuing down the hall.  
  
______  
  
Sometimes it was flattering, sometimes downright annoying. It all depended on approach. As Kei wandered through Harajuku, her purse now packed with supplies for jewelry creation, yet again she was hit on by a guy older than her, once again in a less than polite way. This would have been just another time, hadn't it been for the girl who decided to defend her.  
  
"How disgusting, an old dog going for fresh meat!" the girl said as she flicked her white hair behind her shoulder and looked at the young girl. She was very pale, and probably from the big lout. Seika hated it when men hit on young girls. They were vulnerable, and Seika hated that feeling, she couldn't help but stick up for the other girl. Seika walked up to the man and put her hands on her hips, saying in an acrimonious voice, "Disgusting, and pitiful. Go find a gutter rat and fuck it, you have no business messing with a young girl like this and hurting her." She grabbed the younger girl's hand and started walking away.  
  
As she was dragged along by Seika, Kei started giggling, which soon turned into laughter that made impossible for Kojirou to keep his still unperfected feminine voice. He startled the older girl, which stopped right on her tracks. Seika looked down with rather large eyes and blinked quite a few times. She turned and looked at the little... something, and said in a questioning voice, "Did I just hear something incorrectly or did you just laugh like a guy?" Seika wondered if she had just made a MAJOR mistake in helping out this little... person.  
  
Kojirou was still trying to recover his breath, but he realized Seika was going nowhere until she heard an explanation. "Ahhhh... *gasp*... you see, that always happens when I laugh..." he tried to explain between giggling.  
  
Seika looked skeptic at Kojirou, her hands now on her hips again, and she said in a sarcastic voice, indicating that she didn't really believe him, "What, sounding like a male, or attracting older men?" Seika studied the little person a little more, realizing she should have asked first instead of just going for the kill in helping.  
  
Having regained his breath and stabilized the female voice again, he started to explain. "Yeaown, when I laugh I sound like a boy..." Kei smacked her forehead "But what am I thinking? Thanks for helping me back there! I'm Kei. What's your name?" she said, bowing gracefully.  
  
Seika looked at Kei and smiled, letting out a long breath. She said in a her first nice voice since her introduction, "My name is Seika. It's my pleasure to help you Kei. What are you doing here anyways, and so young without someone to protect you from big louts like that?" She grinned at Kei and placed a hand on her head. It wasn't very often she was going to just introduce herself to someone she had just helped. She usually took them to a safe point and left without saying a word. /Dear lord, what IS the world coming to?/ she thought to herself.  
  
Kei patted her purse, "It's a hobby of mine, making jewelry. I was here hunting for supplies. And I do have someone to protect me from big louts." she answered with a wink.  
  
She laughed a little bit, catching the joke. She scratched her head and looked at Kei again. Seika was curious about the jewelry, she was quite fond of pretty things, though from just looking at you, you couldn't tell. "Quite a hobby Kei. I'm sure it'll get you somewhere in life. But for now, do you need anything else or can I walk you home?" She extended her hand again, indicating that Kei take it.  
  
Kei smiled sweetly at her. "Would you like to have lunch with me? It's the least I can do after you hissed that guy away."  
  
Seika nodded and poked at her pocket, "But it better be cheap, I'm short on money Kei." She winked, mimicking the gesture Kei had shown her.  
  
"No, no... my treat." Kei answered shaking her head, which caused her pigtails to flutter cutely. "What would you like?"  
  
Seika thought about what kind of food she'd like. Nothing came to mind, but a cold drink did. "How about a soda, I'm not hungry. And where would you like to go?"  
  
"For me, any place that serves fried shiitake! You like it?"  
  
Seika grinned and nodded, her hand still extended to take her to the restaurant to eat.  
  
"Great!" Kei took the bigger girl's hand, being her time to drag her new friend around. She only stopped when she found a suitable place. "I hope you like traditional Japanese food." she said as she took off her shoes before entering.  
  
Seika did the same and followed the younger girl. She seemed quite confident about the whole thing. Traditional Japanese food sounded good, but she americanized herself because of spite for her parents. She grinned and wondered if she could actually remember the manners that were forced on her so many years ago.  
  
Kei chose a table for them and picked up the menu. She told Seika she could order anything she wanted, while choosing her own meal. As usual, it was a lot of sashimi and fried shiitake, Kei's favorite food in the whole world.  
  
Seika followed Kei into their seats and sat, picking up a menu also and glanced at the food. She decided on just the crabmeat sushi, and grinned, ordering a soft drink with it. She wasn't too good with food, could never deal with it properly when eating it, but she loved to cook it.  
  
As they waited for the food, Kei handed her purse to Seika. "I have some finished pieces here... want to take a look?" /Just hope she won't get scared at my bizarre sense of aesthetics.../  
  
She grinned at Kei and put her hand up. "How about you show me your best pieces so far? I'm quite the clutz and I might break something, or lose it." Seika grinned from ear to ear, trying to look innocent.  
  
"As you prefer..." she rummaged through her finished pieces, getting one of Kojirou's favorite rings from it. It was silver with blood red engraving, and had a complex pattern that reminded of veins and nerves. Taking the girl's hand, she put it on her finger.  
  
Seika looked at the ring in awe. She'd never seen such a piece done. Then she looked at Kei. /And from such a young girl!/ She looked at the ring again and pressed her fingertips against the engravings. Very interesting and extremely pretty. "It's wonderful, you did it yourself?"  
  
"I did do it myself, but the technique isn't mine. I learned it from a close friends of my sister's. If you look closely, these veins are blood inside glass tubes." At that point Seika was finding that pretty weird. A schoolgirl wearing cute clothes, with Hello Kitty accessories, and that kind of tastes...  
  
She slowly slipped off the ring and handed it back, saying in a soft voice, "It's very pretty, you should keep it up Kei."  
  
"Thank you! As you said, this can get me somewhere in life!" Kei answered cheerfully as she out the ring back in place, not before rubbing it against her skirt. "I could show you more, but our meal has arrived." she added as she turned her had to the waiter, who had brought the awaited food.  
  
"Itadakimasu." she said softly before snapping her ohashi apart and starting to eat.  
  
Seika smiled and nodded to the waiter and snapped her ohashi apart. She took a long drink of her soda first, and then started to eat.  
  
The meal passed quite silently, as Kei most of the time had food in her mouth. Despite eating eagerly, she kept her grace. But of course, she couldn't help offering her friend some shiitake. "Have you ever tried this?" she asked as she held a mushroom close to Seika's mouth.  
  
She bit down on the mushroom and chewed slowly, testing the flavor. She finished and smiled, saying, "Sorry, no I haven't. It's good though, thanks." Seika picked up a piece of crab that she had and put it close to Kei's mouth grinning, "Now try mine."  
  
"Aaaah..." Kei opened her mouth wide and stuck out her tongue. She grabbed the meat in her mouth and waited for it to melt. The way Kei closed her eyes was a pretty good indication that she had liked it.  
  
"Alright, then..." Kei said as she put her bowls right in the middle of the table. "Since we both like each other's, let's do it just like this."  
  
Nodding and laughing softly, Seika pushed her plate to the middle of the table, but already felt almost full. She ate very slowly, letting Kei eat most of it, herself drinking her soda more.  
  
And so lunch went on, until there was just one mushroom left. The polite thing to do for both was to let the other have it, but Kei wasn't very polite when it came to food.  
  
"You want to janken or iai for it?" she asked with a wide grin.  
  
Seika looked at the mushroom at then at Kei, she pushed the plate towards her. "Take it, I'm full." She patted her belly to prove it and winced teasingly.  
  
"Aw, come on, just this little piece... let's iai, it will be fun." Kei answered as she got her ohashi ready.  
  
Seika raised an eyebrow and shot Kei a look. "Do you even know what you're talking about little one?" She placed her hands in front of her and looked over Kei, a smirk on her face.  
  
"Ara? Of course I know..." Kei answered with a pout. "Why, you don't?"  
  
Seika smiled smugly and nodded. "Not a clue." She leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms over her chest.  
  
Kei started giggling. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry...tee-hee! Ok, here's what you do... get your ohashi ready and keep you hand away from the bowl... I'll do the same, and set my watch to beep in 15 seconds. When it beeps, we both try to grab the mushroom. Whoever has the best reflexes gets it."  
  
Seika shrugged and grabbed her ohashi and got ready. She glared at the other girl and looked menacing, though she was only playing the younger girls game. She said in a quiet voice, "Ready...?"  
  
"Not yet... I got a better idea, by the way. When the music stops we do it." Kei set her MP3 player to a Kitaro tune, something you'd expect to see during a battle in a samurai movie. then she got her ohashi ready, testing them a few time. When she considered herself ready, she nodded and pushed play, breathing slowly while waiting for the music to stop.  
  
Seika waited patiently for the music to stop, grinning a bit as she had an idea in her head. When silence set, Kei's arm moved like a striking snake. She grabbed the treat quickly, holding it before starting to eat. Then she turned to Seika, "Mou, you're not even trying... it's no fun this way!"  
  
Her laughter broke the mood, she couldn't help it. "Kei, I told you I'm not hungry though! And I'm like an old lady compared to you, I'm slow" she put emphasis on the word slow. She grinned and offered Kei her drink.  
  
"Ah, alright, alright..." Kei just grabbed the mushroom and ate it, a little disappointed. "But next time, you better fight for it!" she said in a fake stern voice before reaching out and getting Seika's soda. "Go training yourself until then." she tried to sound serious, but it was obvious she was suppressing a laugh of her own.  
  
Seika's grin was bright as she looked at Kei. She was strange, but in a kawaii way. She couldn't help but feel fond of the little one. Seika again leaned back when Kei too the drink, putting her hands behind her head, she yawned and stretched a little bit. Kei stood up and went to pay for the meal. She didn't ask for the check as she didn't want Seika to see how much it cost. Then she came back to the table, gesturing for the older girl to stand up. Seeing Kei get up and pay, she put a dollar as tip on the table and stood up and followed Kei. She sighed softly and put her shoes back on, standing and waiting for Kei after she was done.  
  
When both girls had left the restaurant, Kei turned to Seika, "So, where do you live? My home is pretty far away, so I don't know if you should walk me there... maybe it's better if I walk you home instead."  
  
"I live pretty far as well, it'd be fun to walk you home." Seika smiled sweetly and stood waiting for Kei to choose the direction to go in.  
  
"Well, whatever you prefer... let's get the subway then, and you take me home."  
  
She grinned and nodded, starting in the direction of the subway. Seika was quite silent and kept going. When they came near the Mansion's front, Kei smiled and pointed to it. "That's my home. Wanna come in?"  
  
Seika looked down at Kei and smiled, saying in a soft voice, "I'd like that."  
  
Kei pushed the large metal doors, walking in. She gestured for Seika to follow. "Come in, I'll introduce you to onee-chan!" 


	8. Layer 8 : Diluted

Adam walked briskly ahead of Eiri, pulling her hand as he went along. He didn't even bother to look back at her until she placed her other hand over his.  
  
"You're hurting my hand." Eiri said to him quietly.  
  
Adam stopped and looked back at her. He released her hand and looked down at his own blood-covered one. When he looked back up, Eiri was licking the blood from her hand in a catlike fashion, revealing deep fingernail-shaped cuts in the flesh. She stopped licking at looked up at him, her face covered in her own blood. Suddenly, she smiled almost sadistically, but her eyes still glistened with unshed tears. Adam grabbed and pulled her to him. Her arms stayed perfectly by her sides, never grabbing him.  
  
"Eiri... are you sure that you are prepared to go through with this?" he said softly into her ear.  
  
There was silence. He pulled his fingers through her tangled hair. After a few minutes without dialogue, he brought his left hand up and pushed her head up by pressing her chin.  
  
Her light-coloured lips were slightly parted. A bit of colour had returned to her cheeks. Tears had washed away the blood from around her mouth. Hair was in dull strands in front of her face, the dullness making her hair seem more brown than auburn. The tears had also removed any imperfections from her eyes, as they were perfectly clear. Slowly, she raised her arms up to cling lightly above the elbows of his bent arms. A breathy voice escaped her lips.  
  
"Yes."  
  
He smiled and lowered his head to meet hers. With his middle and index finger curled under her chin, he raised her chin farther to meet his lips. It was a short, unemotional kiss, but enough to close the mental gap formed between them. They parted, and she looked up at him.  
  
"Let's go home... I need to change and contact someone."  
  
They walked out and got in the car, then headed home. Once there, Eiri walked to her room and changed into an outfit consisting of a long, straight black skirt and an oversized gray cashmere sweater. She put on a black Badtz Maru backpack and then slipped on her school shoes. Before walking out the door, she slipped on leather gloves and a black hat. Grabbing her NAVI, she quickly sent a message to Kojirou.  
  
_____  
  
Meet me at the Observation Restaurant in the Shinjuku Mitsui Building on Chuo Dori Avenue in Shinjuku. I need to talk to you.... With a friendly ~chu~  
  
-Eiri  
  
_____  
  
She walked into the garage and slipped on a helmet before getting on the Vespa and speeding out onto the road. Adam watched her from the window as she sped away towards Shinjuku.  
  
Eiri parked the Vespa in the parking garage adjoining the building then walked through the cold to the warmth of the building.  
  
Kojirou had all kinds of thoughts about the message he received. Unfortunately, none was good. Well, there was one far-fetched thought that Eiri wanted to be his girlfriend, but that was too unlikely. As he changed into one of his less flashy outfits, he decided not to assume anything.  
  
/Hmmm... well, I guess this can be fun, after all... I was going to keep from it, but she knows me enough.../ Kojirou thought as he got Kei in gear. After a long kiss between Kei and her sister, she walked hurriedly to the subway.  
  
Eiri stood at the elevator, near the entrance from the subway, waiting intently for the elevator. She removed her gloves and put them in her bag.  
  
The building Eiri had mentioned was quite nice, and warm as opposed to the cold Japanese winter. Of course Kei wasn't one to care, but still. Getting in the elevator, she spotted Eiri, but kept silent about it.  
  
Kei proceeded to follow the girl, which got Eiri confused. When she chose a table, Kei politely asked to sit with her.  
  
"I'm sorry, but I'm waiting for someone." said Eiri to the girl as she put her purse by her seat.  
  
"Oh, I won't disturb your date. I'll leave when he arrives, you can just tell him I was keeping you company." Kei answered with a sweet smile.  
  
"Oh... I'm just meeting a friend..." Eiri said, smiling. "I need to tell him something important."  
  
Kei's eyes shone in response. "Ara, ara... you're gonna ask him to be your boyfriend? This is SO COOL!" she said, bouncing. "Can I stay here and watch?"  
  
Eiri looked the girl in the eyes. "Have we met before?"  
  
"I'm sure we did, but since you don't remember, I'm Kei. Nice to meet you." she said, bowing.  
  
"I'm Eiri," she said, then reached her nail-cut hand out to shake hands with the girl.  
  
"I don't remember those cuts..." she said, fondling Eiri's hand while trying to resist the temptation to lick it. Kei's eyes now had a glint in them that Eiri quickly recognized.  
  
Eiri looked around the restaurant then spoke in a harsh whisper. "Kojirou! Why the hell are you dressed like that?"  
  
Kojirou giggled louder than Eiri would like him to. "What do you think, dear?"  
  
"You sick little bastard..." She winked at him then laughed a bit.  
  
"Tee-hee! Got that right... do I look cute?"  
  
"Yes, very." Eiri said, then grabbed her purse from the floor.  
  
"Thanks! I still have to work on the voice, though. But a friend of mine is helping me with it."  
  
"Um... Kojirou... I need to tell you something... and you have to keep it absolutely secret from everyone else..."  
  
"Just tell me."  
  
She leaned slightly against the table and lowered a hand to brush her stomach. A look of slight confusion came over her face. "God, I don't know how to say it..."  
  
"Hm... do you have to? I mean, if you don't feel comfortable saying, maybe you shouldn't."  
  
Eiri had never heard Kojirou sound that serious before. She paused for a moment and then leaned over the table to get closer to Kojirou.  
  
He stood up as well, millions of thoughts raging through his mind, stealing a kiss from Eiri on the lead.  
  
"I'm..." Eiri's lips parted sensuously, as they always did when she paused after speaking. "I'm...."  
  
A jolt of electricity took over Kojirou's body as he gave in to temptation. He locked his lips against Eiri's, their tongues fighting inside her mouth. Eiri's eyes grew wide, but she didn't break the kiss.  
  
Kojirou just regretted neither of them was bleeding. On the other hand, he rejoiced that he was dressed up as Kei, which surely was causing the few people inside the restaurant to frown considerably. He didn't want to, but he decided to break the kiss before he started petting Eiri, which could get them thrown out of the place.  
  
As their kiss parted, Eiri grew serious again. "Like I was saying..." she murmured. "I'm..." She put her hand on her stomach, looked down at her hand, then looked up at him again.  
  
"You?" Kojirou already had an idea what she wanted to say, but he didn't want to assume.  
  
She bit her lip and nodded slowly. "Pregnant..." she whispered, almost inaudibly.  
  
Kojirou sighed softly. For a while, he was out of what to say. "... ... ... oh... I take it your guest is the father?" Kojirou said in a low voice.  
  
She nodded again.  
  
"Do you feel ready to deal with that?" he asked as his mind shifted back to its normal pace.  
  
"Yes, I think that I will be fine." she lied.  
  
Kojirou shook his head. "You wouldn't have hesitated in telling me, sweetie... come on, how do you really feel?"  
  
"I don't know..." she said, tears gathering in her eyes.  
  
"Now that's better... I don't want you lying to me or yourself." Kojirou shifted so the table wouldn't be in the way, then he wrapped his arms around Eiri, fondling her hair as she buried her face on his shoulder. Her sobs made her body shudder.  
  
"It's going to be too hard..." she mumbled.  
  
Any sexual tension faded. Kojirou had a friend in trouble, and when it came to that, everything else had no importance. "How does Adam feel about it?"  
  
"I don't know!" she wailed. "He acts like he's okay with it, but he was talking to a psychologist at the hospital about putting the blame on someone else."  
  
"He was talking to Dr. Iwakura like he's known him for a long time..." Eiri sighed and looked at Kojirou in the eyes.  
  
"Doctor Iwakura Nakita? That has to be fate... he's onee-chan's lover. Well, I don't know Adam at all, but maybe he's just doing that so he can stay with you. I mean, how will your sister react when she knows about it? She'll probably want him away from you."  
  
"Just the thought that he wanted to not admit that he was the father... it depresses me so..."  
  
"I'm sure it does... but have you talked about that with him?"  
  
"No... I haven't been able to really look at him the same since then..." Eiri leaned back in her seat and moaned.  
  
"Well, I think you should do it, and soon." Kojirou said as he scratched his face. "Do you want me to go with you for support?"  
  
She thought it over for a second. "Sure... I stole Adam's Vespa... it's in the parking garage. I don't have an extra helmet though... do you mind not having a helmet?"  
  
"Sure not. I'm trusting you not to kill me." he answered with a wink.  
  
Eiri pulled her gloves out of the bag and slipped them on, then put the back on her back. "Then... let's go." 


	9. Layer 9 : Whips

Satoshi fancied himself something as a chef. Folding his arms complacently, he smiled triumphantly at the tempura style fried sushi he'd just prepared.  
  
Home alone at 2 PM on a saturday afternoon with nothing to do, Satoshi had taken a break from a half-hour jack off session to internet porn to cook himself lunch. Clad in a pair of blue and white striped boxers, Satoshi piled the fried sushi onto a plate and brought it back upstairs.  
  
Sitting down at the Navi desk, Satoshi prepared to pop a piece into his mouth.  
  
The doorbell rang.  
  
"Sonnafabitch." Satoshi mumbled, stuffing the round snack into his mouth and grabbing a pair of pants. Slipping them on while performing an intricate, hopping dance down the stairs. Opening the door, a package lay there in wait. Checking the address, Satoshi saw that it was addressed to him.  
  
"...sweet." Satoshi hoisted the bulky but light box and carried it back to the room. Slitting the tape with a nearby wire hanger, he opened the box.  
  
A vacuum-wrapped bag was inside, accompanied with a note.  
  
'Just some add-ons. It'll make it more real for you, when the time comes. -Momo'  
  
Satoshi narrowed his eyes. Momo, if memory served him correctly... was the girl at the club who had scared the living shit out of him. As Satoshi slid the plate of sushi into the garbage, he began looking for a screwdriver to take apart his Navi.  
  
___  
  
Yousuke yawned quietly as he sat in front of his computer. The screen filled with words, flickering dully in the dim confines of his university room, sat waiting for him to add the final touches to his paper. Nothing came to him, no matter how hard he thought about it. Unhappily he glared at his monitor in a vain attempt to produce words that would be coheisive and brillent at the same time. At the same time, his friend Yoshi lounged on the futon on the floor playing the Playstation.  
  
"Man, you have to get out more. You're never going to get anywhere just staring at your computer. I think it's best if you take a break for awhile. Like me, you know?" Yousuke glanced over his shoulder at his lazy compatriot.  
  
"Really, I think you might actually be right, Yoshi. I've been working for hours on this, but I have a couple more days till it has to be due. I think I'll check out that Dark Mansion place again. That gorl was really nice even though I looked like a complete dick up there." he said. "What do you think?"  
  
"You know, I didn't think that was your kinda place. Oh, I still insist that I didn't set you up to going there." said Yoshi.  
  
"I believe you, it's not like you guys to place a joke and then not fess up about it. That just leaves someone else who wanted to see me feel foolish, but it doesn't matter. I'm just going there to hang out, even though I think you technically need a reservation to do anything."  
  
"So why go?" asked Yoshi dully, blasting a polygon enemy into oblivion.  
  
"Because I'm bored, and it seemed like a neat place to hang out. Like on T.V., except it's not a fucking coffee shop." replied Yousuke.  
  
"Good point, I might come with you sometime. 'Cept not now, 'cause I'm busy." said Yoshi.  
  
"Bullshit, you're playing a game." said Yousuke.  
  
"I'm just waiting for you to get off the damn Navi. I have a paper to write too, you know. I'm in the same class you are." said Yoshi.  
  
"Fine, I'll see you around Yoshi." said Yousuke as he walked out the door. Yoshi just shrugged and went on playing the video game. It didn't take long for Yousuke to reach the train station, and he was promptly on his way across Tokyo. He had class in about four hours, bur for now he was in good shape to hang out around town and let his batteries recharge from working for several hours. While the train hummed across the tracks he looked at his reflection in the trains windows.  
  
He didn't have the haggered look that came from working night and day, instead, grinning eyes and a pleasent smile looked back at him. Thinking back to his first visit to the Mansion, he realized that he still couldn't remember who he had been looking for, or why they would be at a place as strange as it. He began to walk there, and soon was standing in front of it's doors.  
  
"I wonder if it's as busy during the day? You know, I wonder if it's even open?" he said to himself, but he didn't see a sign in front of the door that stated the hours. Cautiously, he tried the doorknob to see if it opened.  
  
___  
  
Seika listened as Kei did this, yelling for onee-chan. She tried to look respectable and stood up straight, and smiled softly. /God, what AM I doing?!/ Seika became a little fidgety... Seika looked up at the large gates before her. The strange beauty of the house before her made her eyes widen. Her eyes looked over the building softly, looking at the designs. She edged to get inside.  
  
Kei took Seika's hand, leading her through the bizarre maze that was her home. All those metal doors, spikes, chains and whatnot were starting to scare her. Kei just smiled, still firmly holding her hand.  
  
Realizing that she was becoming intimidated by the building, Seika held a little tightly on Kei's hand. She walked in step with the little girl before her, their steps rhythmic. Her torment soon faded as the girls reached the upper levels of the Mansion. They gave the impression of a standard house, which was good. Kei stopped next to a wooden door, knocking slightly.  
  
"Hime! It's Kei! I brought a friend of mine to meet you!"  
  
Seika stood as if she was uncomfortable, shifting from foot to foot, then pausing and taking a breath. She smiled a little bit as Kei announced she had a friend, and she had the urge to laugh nervously. She did in fact and Kei looked at her.  
  
"Hm? Is anything wrong?" Kei asked, blinking.  
  
Before Seika could answer the door opened, startling her. Out came Kei's big sister, seemingly after a long bath. She looked tempting wearing nothing but a silk robe, and some droplets of water still flowed down her body.  
  
"Hi, I'm Hime."  
  
Seika's eyes brightened as she watched Hime. She looked beautiful and tempting, but she shook her head, then bowed to the lady. She said in a voice she presumed was nice, "Hello. I'm Seika... nice house you have here."  
  
"Oh, my dear, this mansion is many things, but it's not nice... still, thank you, Seika-chan!" Hime answered with a bright smile. "Please, make yourself comfortable."  
  
Seika grinned at what Hime said about what the mansion was. She wanted to know what it was she so obviously was talking about, but kept quiet.  
  
"Onee-chan, you should have seen it. There was this guy doing his clumsy best to hit on me, Seika came and completely humiliated him..."  
  
Her face was covered in a slight blush as Kei caught her off-guard in stating what she had done earlier. She had to add in before she said anything else, "It wasn't anything big I did... afterwards Kei took me out to lunch, so she's paid me back."  
  
"Well, say what you want, I'm happy you did that for my sister." Hime interrupted her, gently stroking Seika's cheek.  
  
Seika blush started to fade as Hime touched her. She smirked as innocently as she could and added, "You're welcome..."  
  
Both Hime and Kei smiled in response. Kei hugged her strongly from behind, surprising Seika as she followed with a kiss to her neck. She shivered in response, then turned around and looked at Kei questioningly. Seika looked and smiled a little bit, looking at Kei first then Hime, asking softly, "Where did that come from?"  
  
"Why, from Kei's lips..." Hime answered with a luscious grin as she took Seika's smile for appreciation. "Like this." she leaned forward and softly brushed her lips against Seika's.  
  
A long shiver ran down Seika's body as her eyes closed and she enjoyed the kiss for a few seconds then slowly broke it. Her head was spinning and she blinked for a few seconds then said in an airy voice, "Heh, I'm getting ganged up by family... interesting..."  
  
"We can get more interesting than this..." Hime said softly as she reached inside her robe's sleeve. Kei turned Seika towards her and started unbuttoning her shirt, delicately kissing between her breasts, drawing heavy sighs from her. Seika was becoming dizzy with all of the soft caresses on her skin. She knew she wasn't doing something right, that something was out of place. And then she realized it, her phone rang.  
  
The girls fought the urge to get the phone and throw it against a wall. They stopped fondling Seika so she could pick up. She let out a nervous laugh and then answered it. Her mother was on the other line, which was a big surprise.  
  
"Yes mom... no... I... alright, fine.... Bye." She hung up and looked at Hime and Kei. "My mother wants me home, which is quite odd." She bowed and apologized. "Gomen nasai..."  
  
Hime drew her whip from her robe's sleeve. She was actually planning to use it on Kei until Seika showed up. Cracking it against Seika's beautiful, now uncovered breasts, she slashed them, eliciting a yelp from her. Without hesitating, Hime and Kei buried their faces, savoring Seika's blood. She jumped when they started licking her. Feeling uncomfortable, she started to push them away, trying to button up her shirt.  
  
With blood covering their smiling faces, the girls backed away from Seika's tempting breasts.  
  
"Kei, you walk Seika-chan to the door?"  
  
"Sure." she turned to Seika. "Come with me, dear."  
  
Her face was flooded with color as she saw their faces, then she quickly finished buttoning up her shirt and followed Kei silently. When they reached the gates, Kei asked for Seika's phone number and email address. Eyeing her a little bit, Seika found a piece of paper in her pocket, then grabbed a pen from her pocket to write them down. She slowly handed them to Kei, then smiled and waved, heading towards the subway station.  
  
Kei grabbed Seika from behind as she left, kissing her neck once again. Then she released her, going back to the Mansion. 


	10. Layer 10 : Denial

When they arrived at home, Eiri pulled out her key and unlocked the door that she was surprised to find locked. She walked in and slipped off her shoes and coat, hanging the coat on a peg in the entry hall. Kei let out a sigh as she followed her, carefully taking off her shoes before stepping in. She hugged Eiri strongly before the two went to look for Adam.  
  
Eiri looked around. "Adam? Are you here?" She walked over to the door leading to the garage and looked in. His car was gone. She turned around to Kei. "He'll probably be home in a few minutes. Why don't you make yourself comfortable? Would you like something warm to drink?"  
  
"Sure, thanks!" Kei answered with a smile. "You mind if I help myself?"  
  
"Sure, that's fine." Eiri said, smiling. "I'm feeling a bit sick... I'll just sit in the living room."  
  
"Alright, I'll be back soon." Kei answered before going for the kitchen, walking carefully as not to step on a cat that was lying down on the way.  
  
Eiri sat on the couch, and within seconds cats were fighting over who got to sit on her lap, and one kitten who always sat on her head had already taken its spot.  
  
"Eiri-chan, do you have chocolate bars anywhere?" Kei cried from the kitchen.  
  
"I think that I just bought some... check in the pantry, front of the second shelf."  
  
/Pan-try-front-of-se-cond-shelf.../ Kei said to herself as her hands traced the air looking for it. "Yeaown, it's here! Thanks!" she got one and dropped it into the cup of cocoa she had made herself, then got back to the living room. She smiled sweetly as she saw the cats lying on Eiri. "Come to think of it, you have a lot of babies already, ne, dear?"  
  
"Yes... and I love all of them!" Eiri said happily. As if on cue, one of the smaller cats reached out her head from the couch behind Eiri and rubbed the side of Eiri's face with her white cheek. Eiri kissed the cat on the nose and smiled, then looked back at Kei.  
  
"It's so peaceful, watching you kitties like this..." Kei took a place on the floor next to Eiri, which amazingly didn't disturb the cats.  
  
One of the cats stretched out across Eiri's lap, and another moved to make room for it. The one that moved looked lazily at Kei and then reached out to lick Kei's nose.  
  
She smiled happily at that, leaning so it would be easier for the kitty would to lick her, then kissing its nose in response.  
  
"They were the only beings around me while Papa was working... and after he died... and the times that Caomei had to go home... before Adam came."  
  
"You sound like you were pretty lonely..." Kei said mostly to herself before sipping her cocoa.  
  
"I was extremely lonely... I stopped seeing my doctor after Papa died... so I didn't have much contact with the outside world.... Natsu never came to visit... so I just sat here... sometimes thinking about killing myself..." without disturbing the cats, she pulled up the sleeves on her sweaters to reveal long scars on her wrists. "Sometimes trying..."  
  
Kei frowned at that. If Eiri weren't sounding so sad, she'd have been able to appreciate the beauty of her scars. Instead, she just kissed her wrists, words unnecessary at the moment.  
  
Eiri grinned at Kei. "But I'm fine now." she whispered, before looking at the door as Adam walked in, holding a bag of groceries.  
  
"I'm happy you are." Kei answered softly efore turning to Adam. "Ah, at short last..."  
  
Adam smiled sweetly at Eiri and Kei. "Is this a friend from school?" Adam asked Eiri as he sat down the grocery bag on the floor. As he walked over and sat on the couch, a cat walked over and sat in his lap, curled up and purred.  
  
"Un!" Kei nodded. "I'm Kei, nice to meet you." she said, bowing slightly as she was sitting down.  
  
"Nice to meet you, Miss Kei." he said, bowing his head at Kei.  
  
Kei smiled at Adam, then turned to Eiri, speaking in Japanese. "Honey, I think we better start it now. The sooner we finish this, the better, ne?"  
  
Eiri nodded slightly. "I don't think I should have a baby. I'm going to give it a week or two, but I think it will end up being better if there is no baby. I'm going to talk to sister when she comes back from Aomori in two weeks, and if she allows me, I'm going to give up the baby."  
  
"So... you don't want to have the baby?" Adam said, surprised. "You seemed pretty confident earlier..." Adam tried to look surprised at her comment. Eiri smiled at him. "But... I just don't know..." she continued. "I mean, I am pretty young, and a child would be a great bother..."  
  
Adam squeezed her hand. "It's your choice."  
  
Eiri looked at him. "I am going to give it more time though. I will seriously consider it, and get back to you in about two months." she said quickly, blinking a lot as she said it.  
  
"Not wanting to be pessimistic, Eiri, but months might be too much time." Kei said as she felt her friend was neglecting something. "In months, you can get too connected to the child for your own good."  
  
Eiri focused her attention on Kei. "I just... don't want to make decisions too prematurely... I might end up regretting it."  
  
"I understand, but I think if you decide too late you may regret as well."  
  
She sighed loudly. "I don't know what to do... I want to let it play out and see what happens, but I don't want this to last if it is bad..."  
  
"I'm quite sure it will be." Kei answered, looking down to the ground. "If anything, you already have enough to worry about."  
  
"But I would feel so guilty, Kojirou-kun..." Eiri murmured in Japanese, so that Adam wouldn't pick up on her use of -kun. "But I don't want to ruin my own life..."  
  
"I know you'd feel guilty... I feel guilty already just telling you that. But as you said yourself, you can't ruin your life. As selfish as it is, you have to think about yourself."  
  
"But..." Eiri stopped abruptly. "You're right."  
  
"And I wish I weren't..." Kojirou answered before a heavy sigh, letting his body fall on the floor...  
  
Eiri thought for a moment. "But... Adam is studying to be a doctor. With my inheritance and his salary as a doctor, it will be more than enough to cover the costs of caring for a baby!" Eiri's face lit up, then went dim again. "But I'd have to be out of school... and I would alienate all of my friends..."  
  
"Don't worry about the second part..." Kojirou sat up. "I, at least, will always come to visit you."  
  
She smiled at him. "You're such a great friend..." she leaned over and kissed him on the cheek.  
  
Kojirou wrapped his arms around Eiri and softly rubbed his face against hers. "It's a pleasure."  
  
"I like babies..." Eiri said, finally in English again. She put one arm around Kojirou and pulled him to her in a half-hug. "Kei-chan has helped me find words. I will try this for a little while whilst abortion is an option. If it proves too difficult, then it will be over. If I decide to go forward with it, then so be it. My true friends will stay with me." Upon saying this, Eiri pressed the side of her face to the side of Kojirou's face and smiled.  
  
Adam pulled her to him. "I'm glad you made your own decision in this matter." He kissed her.  
  
Kojirou stood up, leaving almost unnoticed as he went to play with the cats. He figured Eiri would want some time alone with Adam.  
  
_________  
  
Two and a half weeks later, Eiri had worked out everything with Adam. Life was still random, as Caomei had not yet returned to live at the Tsugoyaki residence. Natsumi, however, had returned, and the uncomfortable aura surrounding Eiri and Adam in her presence must have been stifling. Eiri had convinced herself that a baby was not the right thing to do, and therefore decided to have an abortion, but one that required guardian consent so that she could feel at peace with her sister. After school one day, Eiri sent her sister a message via her NAVI to meet her at a cafe.  
  
The younger sister went straight to the Cafe du Soliel after school, an odd restaurant and tea room that was completely French-language. The students learning French at Tokyo Daigaku usually frequented the place, along with lower-level French students from Eiri's school. It was the perfect place for the girls to meet, as most of the people in the French classes did not learn English and could not understand what they were saying in English.  
  
Eiri looked up at Natsumi as the walked over to the cafe table. Natsumi still had her nursing outfit on and was clutching her briefcase in front of her. As she got to the table, she laid her briefcase down with her NAVI on top of it before sitting down herself. She smiled softly at her sister and reached out to pat the younger girl's head. In response, Eiri smiled back.  
  
"What do you want to talk about, sweetie?" Natsu said in French, retracting her hand.  
  
Eiri blushed. Her hands fumbled for a piece of paper in her wallet and she stood. She walked over to her sister and put out of paper in front of her.  
  
"Getting a bit pudgy, are you?" Natsumi giggled, poking Eiri's stomach softly. "Sorry I haven't been around for the last month..."  
  
Eiri kept her eyes trained on the paper, leading Natsumi to look at it. She gasped as she read it.  
  
"Abortion permission form?" Natsumi choked out. "Eiri, why didn't you tell me that you're pregnant?"  
  
"Please, Natsu... I need you to sign that, as my legal guardian..." Eiri murmured, leaning down to hug her sister around the shoulders.  
  
"Eiri, I can't let you do this. It's against my beliefs." Natsu said, ripping up the form. "You know that I'm a *devout* Roman-Catholic. You may be Shinto like Father, but your sisters took after Mother."  
  
"No... please, Natsu, it will be too hard!" Eiri cried.  
  
"Hun, you should have thought about that before you were loose with..." she paused. "Who is the father?"  
  
Eiri walked around and sat in her own chair. She put her head in her hands.  
  
"...Adam." she murmured as softly as possible.  
  
"Adam?! The guy who is living with you?" Natsumi screamed.  
  
"Oh, sister, please, please don't make him leave!" Eiri said as she began to cry.  
  
Natsumi sat stoicly. She stared directly at her sister.  
  
"I'll be going back to Vermont. Today. You can work it out with your lover." she said with a hissing quality in her voice. She slid a hand- written card over to Eiri. "Contact me in a few months, and we'll discuss this. I don't want to hear ANYTHING from you until then!" she said, fuming.  
  
Quickly, Natsumi got up and grabbed her things, then spun around. Eiri watched with tear-filled eyes as her tall sister faded into the crowds. 


	11. Layer 11 : Dark

She's always there to comfort me. My love. My angel.  
  
Sometimes I feel like I can't sleep anymore if it isn't in her arms. I spent nights awake already, longing for her... I can't stand the thought of us being apart.  
  
I never bother to speak to anyone here... maybe this behavior is what makes me the most scarred, most wanted kid here. Yet even now I wonder what she sees in me. I'm not the most beautiful, and certainly not the most friendly prisioner in this place...  
  
She told me to fight. She said I'm stronger than I think. But how am I supposed to believe that when I'm being chained and tortured? I'm not like her, I can't have always a sweet smile on my face. Just... maybe... for her...  
  
"He's been getting much stronger since that happened."  
  
"We realize that, miss. Wave patterns are storming, as the whole staff couldn't think of a better word."  
  
"He might die..." the young woman looked down so she wouldn't have to face the screaming, debating child that desperately tried to free himself from the torture device he was tied to. Wires ran from electrodes put all over his body to all sorts of instruments. Needles pierced his head, connecting to wires which he didn't know where ended. Though sometimes he wondered if he really wanted to know.  
  
"True, but if you excuse me, I don't see why you are concerned, miss."  
  
The response to this was a slap. "Stop the examination and get him to his room." the woman turned again to face the now fainted boy. /Ken... please, react.../  
  
***  
  
"You know, sometimes I feel like just giving up, Yumi... I mean, I don't know what they want, and I have no choice... what's the point in even trying to react?"  
  
"Don't give up, Ken. Just don't. None of us knows what they want, but we must still fight."  
  
"It's just that it all feels so meaningless..." Kenji lowered his head, tears flowing from his eyes.  
  
"Does this feel meaningless as well?" as Kenji looked up to see what she meant, his eyes met Yumi's beautiful, pale face. She had her eyes closed, and was licking her lips softly.  
  
"No... it's all in vain, except when I'm with you." she was expecting a kiss, but instead Kenji hugged her close, nestling in her arms.  
  
"I love you, Ken..." Yumi softly fondled his hair until he was asleep. She then leaned against the wall, falling asleep herself, tears streaming down her eyes.  
  
_____  
  
What at first had seemed like a disaster was having good results. The now heavily reinforced restraints of the Mansion actually resisted Tak's strength. Well... not all of them, as he had just proved...  
  
As Kojirou supervised the test, taking notes whenever he found necessary, Hime and Nakita were somewhere else, dedicating themselves to more pleasuring activities.  
  
Nakita stepped back from the work of art that was his rope clad lover... wondering what to do next... it had taken some time... building up in layers... starting with effectively a bra and panties... then a body harness that restricted Hime's mobility...  
  
Now... Hime's every moment aroused her further... but release was denied... still... he'd better check... "Hime... still with me?"  
  
"Of course..." she answered smiling, much to Nakita's surprise. "Why do you ask?"  
  
"Wanted to make sure you weren't too far under..."  
  
She would have shaken her head, but it was impossible at the moment. "No, not yet..."  
  
"Better than going too far and regretting later... anyway... what about suspending you?"  
  
"Anytime you want, love..."  
  
Nakita looked Hime straight in the eye. "No... don't do it just because you want to please me."  
  
"Oh, but I'm not. You know I'm always up to a further step, don't you?"  
  
"Maybe... but if I went too far and permanently injured you..."  
  
"I don't think so... besides, this is a risk I take every night, isn't it?"  
  
"In such an event... you might forgive me... but I wouldn't."  
  
Hime smiled at him. "I'm telling you I'm ready and willing. If you think this is too far, just stop."  
  
Nakita searched around... found two unused 24 foot ropes... and teased Hime by running the ends over her torso... she whimpered at the touch of ropes, but still knew she wasn't making decisions anymore... she'd just be suspended when Nakita decided. He took one rope... it was silk... or at least felt like it... and started wrapping, heading down from Hime's armpits... taking full advantage of the rope's length... leaving 8 feet free each end... Nakita left that rope loose... and wrapped her hips in the same manner...  
  
Digging up a third rope... and locating the eyelets set in the roof... Nakita lifted Hime up with his right arm... his free hand guided the free ends of the ropes through the eyelets... and secured them... now Hime's bodyweight was spread across 12 coils of rope and 4 Tak tested eyelets...  
  
The third rope went through a pair of eyelets as yet unburdened... after being secured... 11 and a half feet to play with for each end. Most of each free end went to wrap Hime's lower legs... a couple of loops around her feet secured it...  
  
Hime shook her body, causing her to slightly oscillate like a swing. She was so aroused her love juices fell to the floor.  
  
Nakita paused to caress Hime... "Enjoying it?"  
  
"Quite..." even out of breath, she managed to answer.  
  
A loud crash sounded nearby... Nakita muttered "GREAT timing..."  
  
Thrown out of her semi trance, Hime tried to understand what was going on. "Nakita, what the hell was that? Tak's playing Houdini again?"  
  
"Dunno..." Nakita let Hime down from the suspension before going to check... shortly after... she could hear a contrabass voice asking "Couple of questions... who the hell am I... where the hell am I... and who the hell are you?"  
  
"Sheesh, Tak... you love banging what you use for your head on stuff..."  
  
"I don't know... who you're talking about... but I'm not him..."  
  
/Ah, how lovely... Tak's either going nuts or getting interference from the Wired.../ Hime thought as she resigned to the fact that she couldn't stand up and go check it.  
  
At that moment... a heavy knocking on the front door.  
  
"Damnation, another one who wants to thrash the door... I'll get it." Kojirou went for the door, a bit pissed at the strength of the knocks.  
  
It was de Takman, gonna crunch de door by knocking it... "Nakita in?"  
  
"Ahn... yeaown... and so... are you..." Kojirou stared at him oddly. "Anyway, come in." as they walked inside, Kojirou cried for Nakita "Heh, we have another Tak out here!"  
  
"WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON?" both voices thundered in response. Tak recovered first... barging in and bounding up the stairs... skidding to a halt when he saw Nakita and the person with him...  
  
"I'm not the one to ask..." Kojirou said as he followed the Takman... when he got to where the brothers were, "Alright, my turn, what the fuck is going on?"  
  
After recognizing who it was, Tak couldn't care less. "Me twin brother." And waltzed down to get something to eat.  
  
"Damn... Kannai looks a lot bigger than when I last saw him..."  
  
"Your DEAD twin brother?" Kojirou tried to ask as Tak went out.  
  
Tak shrugged, "Game NOT over."  
  
"My words exactly." Kannai answered carelessly.  
  
Kojirou turned to the brothers, "Ahn... I'll go untie onee-chan, I'll be right back."  
  
"You're wha'?"  
  
Nakita helped Kannai up... "OK... what the hell happened when you and Tak disappeared?"  
  
Kojirou literally ran to where Hime was, both coming to meet the brothers shortly after.  
  
"We missed anything?" Hime asked as she still didn't know the present giant wasn't Tak.  
  
"That ain't Tak. That's his identical twin brother, Kannai... presumed dead for the past ten years." Nakita answered  
  
"I see... and he decided to show up now... lovely..."  
  
After scooping Hime up, he said: "Well... I'm gonna let you two catch up... I need a bath..."  
  
"Yeaown, you do that..." she turned to Kannai "I'm Hime, nice to meet you... despite the strangeness of the situation..."  
  
Kannai shrugged... tripped down the stairs...  
  
Nakita winced at the noises and curses...  
  
"Kojirou, get me some Red Suffering, will you, dear? I'll go talk to Nakita."  
  
"Say no more..." Kojirou answered as he went for the kitchen.  
  
As he got there, he spotted Tak ravaging the fridge. "Hoe, Takman... mind explaining to me what's happening?"  
  
"Well... one set of Iwakura twins is reunited..."  
  
"Yeaown, but why you act so casual about it?"  
  
"Rather have me freaking out, jumpy, jittery and breaking stuff?"  
  
"I'll pass. Though it would be less strange..." he answered a he gathered the cherry liquor Hime had asked.  
  
"That spa up there big enough to hold all of us?"  
  
"Hah, you wish, Tak..."  
  
Wearing a mischievous grin... he snapped his fingers.  
  
"No, no, Takman... don't even think about that..." he finished gathering the Red Suffering and started going to where Nakita and presumably Hime now were. With nothing better to do... Tak and Kannai followed Kojirou... weird...  
  
He knocked slightly... as Nakita got it, he gave him the trey with cherry liquor, chocolate, and a very sharp knife. Turning to the twins... "Why are you following me anyway?"  
  
In unison, they replied "Nothing else to do..."  
  
"I see... let's just leave the lovebirds to talk, and you explain to me what's been happening in the past ten years..."  
  
Again in unison, they shrugged. Kojirou scratched his eyes, then closed the door and headed back down the stairs.  
  
One of the pair landed in front of him... the other took a more conventional route...  
  
Kojirou shook his head, leading the twins to the living room. "You want something to drink?"  
  
"Yeah... whatcha got?"  
  
"I don't know, really... you can check the kitchen if you want. We're not really good hosts here."  
  
"Tak.. you check..."  
  
"You're younger... lemme give you a hand..."  
  
Tak launched Kannai kitchenwards...  
  
"Kids, kids..." Kojirou said rubbing his temple, "You mind not thrashing my house to the ground?"  
  
Tak shrugged "He's not as heavy as I am.."  
  
"...was that really necessary?"  
  
"We got three bottles of vodka..." Kannai cried from the kitchen  
  
"Tak, can you..." Kojirou started asking "...nevermind, I forgot you don't need glasses."  
  
"Might as well ... for novelty value..."  
  
Kojirou chuckled in response, "If you say..."  
  
Kannai returned with the three bottles and as many schooner glasses.  
  
"Slow return bodydump?"  
  
"Bodywhat?" Kannai asked as he eyed Tak strangely.  
  
"Downloading yourself directly to the wired without benefit of connection."  
  
"Hm, someone who's even more lost than I am... keep going, Tak."  
  
"From what Nakita said... one requirement is severe psychic trauma before the age of 12... we both suffered that..."  
  
"Uh huh... I remember that... one question..."  
  
"Shoot."  
  
"Why'd you ditch your arms?"  
  
"Only way to shut out the voices of the ones that didn't survive." after a short pause "You included."  
  
"Whoa... stop now, guys... does Nakita know about that?"  
  
Tak shook his head.  
  
"Then I guess we better assume they're just talking and go up there."  
  
"No..."  
  
"And why not?"  
  
"You want to disinter a period of madness, you do it without me."  
  
"Whatever you say... K, then keep going."  
  
"What happened on your side of the Wired after the bastard threw the switch?"  
  
"Well... I was ripped from my body... like the others..."  
  
"I heard that..."  
  
"And what have you been doing all this time?" Kojirou asked, looking curiously at Kannai. "Ah, and how's the inside of the Wired?"?  
  
"Floated around...  
  
Kojirou's inquiring look clearly showed he didn't consider the answer enough. But Kannai didn't seem inclined to say more, so Kojirou shrugged, figuring the inside of the Wired probably wasn't that good a place. "Keep going..."  
  
"A little while ago... I became able to temporarily bodydump in outline."  
  
"Outline?"  
  
Tak answered that one "Like a ghost... but you still looked 6..."  
  
Kannai shrugged "Residual self image."  
  
"And how did you become able to do it?"  
  
He pointed at Tak, "I watched and learned from the master... who I also used as a template."  
  
"How so?... no, wait, I get it!"  
  
"Should be very obvious."  
  
"Yeaown, it actually is..." Kojirou answered, scratching the back of his head.  
  
"What took so long?"  
  
"Heh... remembering what the word template means..."  
  
"I'm not as stubborn as you are." Kannai answered  
  
"Ah, you mean Kannai..." Kojirou smacked his forehead.  
  
Before any of the brothers could answer, Kojirou excused himself and left as the intercom rang again.  
  
____  
  
After walking through the main thoroughfare of the Tsugoyaki residence, a house nearly completely Japanese in style, the master bedroom was a definite oddity. As a surprise, Ryuichi Tsugoyaki had the bedroom designed in the style of his late wife's childhood home. The ceilings were high- almost considered vaulted- and had intricate crown moulding. The large picture window had a chaise lounge sitting in the cove of it and red and gold curtains that dragged the floor. Golden couches and chairs were sitting randomly around the room, the largest sitting at the end of the bed. The bed itself was very tall, the top of it only about a foot from the highest point in the ceiling. The top was round and curtains draped elegantly from it. It was a four-post bed, and most of the time the curtains were wrapped around the posts. When the occupant of the bed wanted to close out the world, the curtains simply dropped down to shroud the entire bed in darkness.  
  
On a quiet Saturday morning, Eiri Tsugoyaki had woken up, looked out the window at the bright sun of the new day, and closed the curtains. For the first time in months, she was completely bereft of human contact in the house and now she felt it lonely. Adam had been spending his nights at a dorm at Tokyo Daigaku for the last week, apparently engrossed in laboratory experiments. Caomei, as Muqin was in town, no longer stayed at the Tsugoyaki house. It had been a hard week for Eiri, and she wished that there had been someone there when she got home. Finally, though, she realized that the week was over, and she got back to more important things. She was still in her pyjamas, and her covers will still pulled tightly over her, but she had a laptop in her lap.  
  
"Eight weeks... In theory your baby is still an embryo because it has the remains of a small tail, which will disappear in the next few weeks. But that's the only thing getting smaller. The heart and brain are becoming more complicated, the eyelid folds are forming, the tip of the nose is present, and the arms now bend at the elbows and curve slightly over the heart. You may not look or even feel pregnant, but your uterus is expanding to accommodate your growing baby. Before pregnancy it was the size of a clenched fist; now it's as big as a grapefruit. As it grows you may feel some abdominal cramping and mild twinges." Eiri read, speaking aloud softly.  
  
When she finished reading, Eiri flung back against her pillows. She sighed and looked at the computer's screen, hoping that maybe someone was actually wanting to come in contact with her isolated self.  
  
_____  
  
Opening the door, Yousuke saw patrons walking back and forth, but no host, which left him alone and confused. Luckily, he had expected that and began to implement his master plan of wandering aimlessly. Down halls, up stair, down into dungeons, into and out of rooms, he saw people in different positions, doing different things. Definitly not his normal hangout - he came for the tea.  
  
Too bad for him, then, that the house was big and he was clueless. Normally bright and quick, the curves and twists of the house reduced him to a child looking for his parent. Getting lost didn't hang him up, though. He decided to wait for someone he recognized to show up, and in the meantime.... the headphones came on. Soon, loud techno music sounded in his skull, and he took a seat against the wall, slouching, smiling, a discarded rag doll without an owner.  
  
Tak spotted Yousuke as he wandered..... on impulse... went over and tried to get his attention...  
  
// Yeah right... like you have difficulties doing THAT //  
  
"Hello, I'm Yousuke. I'm looking for Hime or, oh... who was it? Oh, right, or Kojirou. I was invited to come over again sometime, but I don't really know my way around. Go you suppose you could help?" he asked pleasantly.  
  
In his bass voice, shattering if desired, rumbling with infrasonics if not.. Tak laughed... "Could say that.... Hime's my brother's girlfriend... I knock around with Kojirou a bit... I'll show you around... keep an eye out for my identical twin brother... you won't be able to miss him."  
  
"Oh, right. Hey, thanks a lot for showing me around. Do you work here?" asked Yousuke as he looked around curiously. "Because this place sure is strange. I don't remember seeing anything like it."  
  
"You'll get used to it.... I've been knocking around here on and off since I arrived in Japan."  
  
"Sounds like it could be worse." said Yousuke. "It's kind of strange, but it's nice enough. I'm from the university here, so that's where I'm most familiar with. Spent a little time here, and I like Tokyo a lot." he paused for a second before he added, "So, when did you arrive in Japan?"  
  
"'Bout a year ago. I'm the youngest of a total of eight children. You?" 


	12. Layer 12 : Evil

Eiri sat on the couch of the living room, staring blankly at the crimson roses in a vase on the glass table. In her hand, she clutched a calligraphic card that had been with the flowers. In messy writing, the words "watashi no koibito ni natte kudasai" were spelled out using absolutely no kanji. Hanging from the vase was a diamond ring, a gift to her from her beloved. As she looked around, she noticed that there were many other roses in the room, and although they were beautiful, they did not fill the gap that her Adam should be filling on that day of love. She completely disregarded the fact that he shouldn't be sending gifts to her on Valentine's Day, and that his day was a month later on White Day; it was just the principle that he didn't know this and he should be with her on the day that he considered their love's day.  
  
Depressed, Eiri dropped the card onto the table and stood. She had already changed into casual clothes, consisting of a short leather dress, a bell- sleeved veil-material top, and tights with high boots. Her hair was down, fanning down her back. After a silence moment of standing, she walked to the door and grabbed her long black trenchcoat and flung it on. If Adam wasn't here for Valentine's Day, surely someone would spend it with her...  
  
_______  
  
Eiri eventually found her way to the Mansion, now familiar with the trail from her house to there. The air was a bit brisk, but with her trench coat wrapped around her, she only felt it slightly. Awkwardly, she walked up the steps to the front door. She hadn't called or messaged Kojirou to let him know that she was coming, but she was sure that he wouldn't mind. She knocked lightly.  
  
On the inside, Kojirou was in the verge of sleep, alone as Hime had gone out with Nakita. Being in the verge of sleep was never good when working with fire and metal... his keen senses took care of getting him awake as someone had knocked. As nobody knocked at those doors without a reason, maybe outside there was a cure for his boredom.  
  
He opened the door quickly to find Eiri waiting outside. Without a word, he hugged her right after recognizing her.  
  
Eiri smiled softly at him. "Mind if I come in?"  
  
"Not at all." He nodded towards the inside.  
  
She stepped in the warmth of the building, slipping off her coat and exposing the outfit beneath as she moved further into the entry. She held out the coat to Kojirou, not knowing where she was to put it. She explained herself.  
  
"Adam's not at home, and I didn't want to be alone on Valentine's Day."  
  
"Hm, I see. Glad to know you chose me for the honor."  
  
"Wouldn't give it to anyone else." she murmured, looking around the entry. This was her first time in the Mansion, and what she was seeing amazed her. She looked back into Kojirou's eyes. "Care to show me around?"  
  
"Be my guest. Please leave your shoes and sanity at the door." he answered with a wink. After setting Eiri's coat on a couch, Kojirou took her hand, leading her to the lower levels. She followed blindly.  
  
"Well... the dungeon first, I suppose... then we get to the not so much fun part." he opened large metal doors in his path, walking through dark corridors, until they stopped inside a large, plain room. No chains visible, or spikes, or anything one would expect from a part of the dungeon.  
  
"This is what we call the absolute dark room. There's just light when the doors are open, and mostly groups come here for reasons we never bother to question. We lock the doors and they do whatever they like... though... we had a dead body here... once..." he winced as he remembered it.  
  
"Lovely..." Eiri winced, her voice sarcastic. For a room that appeared so normal, she wondered what could possibly be done besides normal sex... but then she remembered stories that Adam had told her of friends he hand that enjoyed being choked during sex. She failed to ask what the cause of death was before continuing following Kojirou.  
  
"From here on it gets lighter... a bit..." he went upstairs, leaving behind that cursed room. The second level was by no means lighter... at least visually. Chains and blades hung from the corridor ceiling, and blood stained the doors. He stopped to check Eiri's reactions.  
  
Upon seeing the blood and blades, Eiri brushed her wrists lightly with her fingertips then crossed her arms and looked down. She clutched her arms closer and stepped a bit closer to Kojirou before looking up again to look into his eyes.  
  
Kojirou wrapped his arms around her, pulling her face to his left shoulder. "You want us to stop?" he whispered in her ear.  
  
"No, I'm fine, just some... bad memories..." she murmured to him.  
  
He smiled softly. "I have some of my own... guess the trick is turning them into good memories..." he let go of her and took her hands in his own, staring painfully at her wrists.  
  
"So... are there any... non-kinky rooms? Places that Adam and I would feel safe in?" she said, half-grinning at him, and not making a move to take her hands from him.  
  
"Hmmmmmm..." he looked up as if in deep thought process. "...unless you count the kitchen, living room and such, I'm afraid not..." Kojirou answered laughing.  
  
"Ah, and I am quite familiar with the use of the kitchen in such instances..." she said, letting her voice trail off slightly at the end of the phrase, then smiling and laughing a bit.  
  
"I know, I know..." he grinned widely. "But I wouldn't allow you to come here with Adam and not use at least one room of the dungeon."  
  
A third voice joined them, seemingly very angry at something. "I don't think she'll be coming back, Ken. This has gone as far as I can stand it."  
  
"Ken?" whispered Eiri to Kojirou before looking over to the source of the voice.  
  
"You heard that too?" Kojirou looked around, his head starting to ache. He looked around until his eyes met her. She who was supposed to be dead. "Yumi..." he whispered in complete disbelief. "Why are you here? I thought you... no, wait. Eiri, that's Yumi... she lived with me in the orphanage... now you tell me, how can you be here?"  
  
Yumi simply floated towards the pair, passing through them and leaving a slight jolt of electricity in their bodies. Kojirou held Eiri tight, as he was unsure she'd stand that much longer.  
  
"I'm not the Yumi you knew, Ken..."  
  
Kojirou hissed in response. "Well, I'm not the Kenji you knew..."  
  
Eiri leaned closely into Kojirou's grasp and closed her eyes, questions racing through her head.  
  
"Alright... let's go up... then you explain."  
  
"As you say..." Yumi answered in a sibillating voice.  
  
They went up to the living room, Kojirou always keeping Eiri in his arms.  
  
"Well, what do you want to know?"  
  
"Start telling me what that ghosting through me and Eiri was."  
  
"Too long a story... Kojirou..." she retorted sarcastically. "Suffice to say I'm deprived of my physical body..."  
  
"How is that possible? ...are you really dead?"  
  
"Am I? I don't know... you could say I am... in short, I realized I had no need for that maculated body. And so I abandoned it."  
  
"Like you abandoned me?" was Kojirou's response between hissing.  
  
Eiri stared blankly at the 'girl,' then looked back at Kojirou. His past was seeming murkier to her than ever, and she was dying to ask him questions. She suddenly broke in. "Kojirou-kun, I'm feeling a bit sick... do you mind making me some tea?" she said to him softly, hoping to get him alone.  
  
"Sure!" he turned to Yumi "You wait here?" his answer was a shrug. He went for the kitchen with Eiri after him.  
  
When they reached the kitchen, Eiri stared at Kojirou. "I have a feeling that you haven't told me something extremely odd about your past..." she said, sitting down.  
  
He looked down to the ground, a mix of guilt and anger in his eyes, "I'm sorry, it's just that it didn't seem important... and I never thought it'd come to haunt me. You want tea, or I just keep talking?"  
  
"I need tea..." she moaned, laying her head on the table and looking up at him. "So... your name's not Kojirou like my name's not Eiri."  
  
"Quite..." he answered as he started getting water to boil. "I was born with the name Aoki Kenji... and stuck with it for a while. As my parent's didn't want me, I was sent into an orphanage... then to some sort of mental institution... when I ran away, I adopted the name Sasaki Kojirou."  
  
"Why adopt a new name? Out of hate for your parents, or just so you are not identified as their child?"  
  
"Mostly the latter... it's not like I hated my parents... I just didn't care."  
  
"What is the story behind Yumi?"  
  
"As for Yumi... I met her in the orphanage. At the time I thought she loved me like I loved her... and I was the child that was abused most often, but she was always there to give me hope and will to survive..." Eiri could see his eyes welling up with tears. "It went on until I fought back... I can't explain... one moment I was about to be raped... the other I had blood covering my whole body, and thrashed meat all around me. That's when they started examining me... I don't know what thy were searching for, but it hurt as if they wanted to rip my soul out of my body."  
  
Eiri stood up and walked over to him, then wrapped her arms around him to comfort him. He hugged Eiri close, gathering the strength to continue the story.  
  
"Well... turns out that I didn't react as they wanted me to... whatever that was. I was sent to some sort of school for gifted kids... it would have been good... but... I was away from her..."  
  
__________  
  
"Single child, lived here all my life. Uh, Japan I mean, not Tokyo." said Yousuke. " I go to college here at Tokyo University, majoring in Biotechnology and Life Sciences. It's interesting sometimes, but it can get kinda tedious." as they walked, he began peering for Eiri or Kojirou up ahead.  
  
"Well... I'm still in school... my brother has done a few papers on... what did he call it.... ah... yeah... cyberpsychology." 


	13. Layer 13 : Twins

Eiri glanced down at the watch on her wrist as she left the kitchen. She felt bad leaving Kojirou, but it was certainly late and the cats were probably fretting. She moved towards the door with her eyes downcast, but stopped when she hit a large hallway-block. Seeing large shoes, she gasped slightly and then looked up to see the face of Tak a good two feet or more above her own. Quickly, she moved backwards and started shallowly bowing whilst chanting 'gomen nasai.' She clasped her hands together over her leather-covered chest and looked up at him with pleading eyes, hoping he would accept her apology. Noticing another person beside Tak, she turned her head to look at him.  
  
Â  "I'm sorry, Iwas just leaving. I was hurrying and regretfully do not have time for pleasantries." she murmured quickly, looking at both of them. After a slight curtsy, she laid her hand softly on her stomach, which was now becoming quite a habit, and went around Yousuke, leaving the aroma of her perfume as she continued slowly down the hallway.  
  
Â "Strange..." said Yousuke. "You know, I feel like we've been here forever. We should probably move on and find Kojirou or someone. So, do you anything about cyberpsych yourself? What is it that you do?" asked Yousuke. As the conversation progressed, neither noted the red laser light dot that ran across the back of Tak's head, down his body and across the room. Tak couldn't have noticed, Yousuke wasn't paying attention. They moved on, leaving the hallway desolate and empty.  
  
Â Â  Tak laughed bitterly.Â  "Who do you think was the subject of Nakita's PhD?"  
  
Â Â  ***  
  
Â  The office would have been empty except for the two folding chairs that sat unfolded in the middle of the floor.Â  Two men wearing immaculate black suits sat relaxed, one leaning back and gazing out the window. One was tall, Caucasian, with pale blue eyes.Â  It was he who was gazing out the window.Â  The other was shorter, more serious, if that was possible, and reading a novel.Â  In a pile by his chair sat a pile of electronics - headwear, eye wear, et al.  
  
Â  The one reading the novel cleared his throat suddenly, and put away his novel. The sudden sound caused his fellow operative to look up.  
  
Â  "Something wrong?" he asked looking over.  
  
Â  "No, not really. I was just thinking."  
  
Â  "About?"  
  
Â  "I'm a little anxious, that's all. We're supposed to have all of the information available, but there's a lot that we don't have any idea about. I can't help but wonder if we haven't been told everything."  
  
Â  "I think you're being too paranoid." said the lounging operative. Several second went by slowly, as he went back to looking out of the window. The other picked up his novel again, paging back to its prior location.  
  
Â  "That's awfully ironic." he said.  
  
Â Â  ***  
  
Â Â  It had taken some doing, but Nakita had managed to get the mansion to himself and his brothers for three hours - as for HOW he pulled it off, that's for him to know and you to worry about.  
  
Â Â  Since himself and Hime had been together for... oh... nearly nine months now... Nakita was planning ahead for the anniversary...  
  
Â Â  Conventionality and Dr. Iwakura were not good bedfellows.  
  
Â Â  So we find the good doctor doing some... singing...  
  
Â Â  The background music seemed to be a dancy beat... and Nakita led off, mike in hand.  
  
Â Â  ...fast and low in his usual baritone: "Come follow me"  
  
Â Â  While a couple of bars of the music played, he altered to Hime's voice - that had been getting a workout - had fooled even the woman herself a couple of times...  
  
"I got all systems go  
  
Nothing standing in my way  
  
I should be far down the road but I'm not"  
  
"Something's holding me back  
  
Like a world war attack  
  
And I got you by my side but you're not.  
  
"Do you remember when  
  
We thought it was the wind  
  
A shooting star around the sky.  
  
"Do you remember when  
  
You were from heaven sent.  
  
I thought the wind could make me fly."  
  
Â Â  As Nakita was singing that verse, Tak and Kannai managed a synchronized bodydump, ending up within three metres of their respective targets... rolling up to their full heights, they were the chorus line  
  
"A-a-angels crying  
  
When you're far away from me  
  
Always trying  
  
I will make you see."  
  
Twins: "A-a-angels crying"  
  
Nakita: (normal baritone): "When angels cry"  
  
Twins: "When you're far away from me  
  
No denying"  
  
Nakita: (normal baritone): "There's no denying"  
  
Twins: "We were meant to be.  
  
Â Â  While the music played on, Nakita reset his voice back to Hime's and got ready to roll again:  
  
"I tumbled from the sky  
  
Where I was soaring so high  
  
I never thought that I could fall back down to the ground."  
  
"Somewhere along that ride  
  
I found that we could stop the tide  
  
It's time for me to buy another round."  
  
"Do you remember when  
  
We thought it was the wind  
  
A shooting star around the sky."  
  
"Do you remember when  
  
You were from heaven sent.  
  
I thought the wind could make me fly."  
  
Twins: "A-a-angels crying  
  
When you're far away from me  
  
Always trying  
  
I will make you see."  
  
Twins: "A-a-angels crying"  
  
Nakita: (normal baritone): "When angels cry"  
  
Twins: "When you're far away from me  
  
Always trying"  
  
Nakita: (normal baritone): "I always try"  
  
Twins: "I will make you see."  
  
Nakita: (Hime's voice) : "Do you remember when  
  
We thought it was the wind  
  
A shooting star around the sky."  
  
"Do you remember when  
  
You were from heaven sent.  
  
I thought the wind could make me fly."  
  
Twins: "A-a-angels crying  
  
When you're far away from me  
  
Always trying  
  
I will make you see."  
  
Twins: "A-a-angels crying"  
  
Nakita: (normal baritone): "When angels cry"  
  
Twins: "When you're far away from me  
  
There's no denying"  
  
Nakita: (normal baritone): "No denying"  
  
Twins: "We were meant to be."  
  
Twins: "Angels are cryin'  
  
Angels are cryin'  
  
Angels are cryin'..."  
  
Nakita: (Hime's voice): "I got all systems go  
  
Nothing's standing in my way  
  
I should be far down the road but I'm not"  
  
"Something's holding me back  
  
Like a world war attack  
  
And I got you by my side but you're not.  
  
The music started winding up to a coda, so here it went...  
  
Twins: "A-a-angels crying"  
  
Nakita: (normal baritone): "When angels cry"  
  
Twins: "When you're far away from me  
  
Always trying"  
  
Nakita: (normal baritone): "I always try"  
  
Twins: "I will make you see."  
  
Twins: "A-a-angels crying"  
  
Nakita: (normal baritone): "When angels cry"  
  
Twins: "When you're far away from me  
  
There's no denying"  
  
Nakita: (normal baritone): "No denying"  
  
Twins: "We were meant to be."  
  
Â Â  As the music finished, none of the three brothers Iwakura noticed a fourth...  
  
watching them...  
  
s  
  
i  
  
l  
  
e  
  
n  
  
t  
  
l  
  
y  
  
sorrowfully...  
  
r  
  
e  
  
g  
  
r  
  
e  
  
t  
  
f  
  
u  
  
l  
  
l  
  
y  
  
intangibly. 


	14. Layer 14 : Confusion

"Hoe, Jun, Yousei!"  
  
"Ah, Kojirou!" Jun started answering as he separated his lips from Yousei's for a while. "What brings you here?"  
  
"Not much actually. Just wanted to say hi, check on your wardrobe... take some fanservice pictures and sell them 9in the black market..."  
  
"Be our guest." Yousei answered, grabbing Jun's chin and kissing him once again. Kojirou got a camera from his purse and pretended to take a picture. The three boys smiled playfully.  
  
***  
  
He had to stand on all the way back home. Without much to think about, and sleepy as all hell, Kojirou leaned against the door and contemplated the city that rushed before his eyes.  
  
"So fast... too fast maybe... what are we doing?" he whispered, his mind overflowing with thoughts about how mankind so desperately treasures its own mess.  
  
He had never cared before. So far, in Kojirou's mind the world cold go anywhere it pleased, as long as he had his freedom to choose his own way. But that night, or rather that morning, beholding the rushing Tokyo, he felt some kind of connection to the whole world. And he felt sorry for it.  
  
Maybe in that morning Kojirou had changed forever. Maybe he'd just forget it all as soon as he hit his bed. Either way was fine with him, actually.  
  
***  
  
Eiri leaned back in her leather chair and gingerly rubbed her tired eyes. Her new NAVI filled the black room with its electric light, a faint humming sound reverberating off the walls and filling the area. She had been there since she had arrived home over eleven hours ago. Eiri stretched her arms over her head, pulling her spaghetti-strap tank up to expose her now smoothly rounded stomach. Putting her arms down on the rests again, she leaned forward to read messages on the bright screen. Whilst doing so, she tugged on a stray curl that had fallen out of the messy ponytail that she had made from her now shorn- short hair. The curliness of her hair annoyed her now; when she was getting it cut, she did not realize that wavy hair such as hers would end up in soft ringlets when chopped to her shoulders. Bored with the random messages from the realm of the Wired, Eiri stood and slowly left the room, stretching all the way.  
  
It was black as pitch outside, Eiri noted thankfully, and she walked to the kitchen. Adam had fallen asleep at the kitchen table and his University books [Eiri assumed] were spread across the table and under his head. She hadn't noticed that he even came home; he must have decided to leave her alone after the huge fight they had engaged in that morning. Eiri realized that she didn't even remember what the fight was over...  
  
She opened the refrigerator and pulled out a bottle of an infusion that her Bali-born maid had brought. The taste was a bit bitter, but the mixture of lemon grass and ginger helped to quell her stomach. She poured the mixture over raspberry-leaf tea ice and took a sip. She continued the sipping whilst going over to Adam and mussing his hair before heading to her room.  
  
---  
  
Adam, sensing that Eiri had left the room, lifted his head and moved his hand from a note that he had received from a superior in France. He stared at it once again, trying to work out the mystery that the note had started.  
  
/After looking at all family records, it seems that Eiri Tsugoyaki is an only child. There is no way that a 'sister' could have sent for you; she has no such sibling. Why she has insisted the existence of other family members is unknown, but calls for further investigation of the subject.../  
  
For the first time, Adam looked around the room. There were pictures everywhere, but he noticed that Eiri and Caomei were the only people in the pictures. In early ones, Adam noticed with a start, Eiri was standing with her mother and father. The same mother that had died during Eiri's birth? Holding his head, Adam stood and quietly made his way to his own room...  
  
---  
  
Adam looked across the table at the pallid-faced Eiri as she sipped the tea that Nusa, the maid, had brought to her. She had taken a few bites from her muesli and had gnawed on a raspberry leaf or two, but she was still surprisingly pale and had a bit of a greenish tinge to her.  
  
"Do you want me to call school and tell them that you won't be there today?"  
  
She paused for a moment and then looked at him. "No, I want to see Kojirou. Besides, I don't want the teacher saying in front of the class again that my older brother called me in sick," she sipped at the tea again. "It's fucking embarrassing."  
  
Silence took over the table once again. The only noise in the house for a few minutes was the occasional thump of a cat jumping from a table to the floor in the living room. Suddenly, Adam spoke.  
  
"Do you have a picture of your sister? You talk about her all the time, but I've never seen what she looks like..."  
  
"You've seen her. She was here one night. You were sitting on one couch and she on the other in the living room a while ago."  
  
Adam stared at her, a confused look on his face. "What... no, I've never seen her before."  
  
Eiri kept her head down, but Adam could see her eyes glaring up at him from under her hair. "You've seen her before," she said sternly. "Back in early December, she was here."  
  
"No... no she wasn't, Eiri."  
  
Eiri brought up her head quickly and screamed her words. "She was HERE! I came home from school, and she was here with YOU!"  
  
Adam looked at her, a bit scared but hiding his emotion. "Eiri, when I came home one night on..." he paused. "9 December, I found you in the entry hall... you had apparently fainted..."  
  
"I never faint. Never. I didn't faint, you are lying, making up a story..." she continued babbling whilst Adam kept speaking.  
  
"If this is the same night, you imagined it, Eiri. Your sister was never here... do you have a picture?"  
  
Eiri stopped and stood, knocking her glass off of the table and not even twitching as the glass smashed on the tile floor. She glared at Adam then placed her left hand on her sizable stomach before storming out of the room, murmuring something about her sister not liking pictures. Adam closed his eyes as the slamming of the front door resounded through the house.  
  
"Have a nice day, dear..." he murmured sarcastically before moving to clean the smashed glass off of the floor. This job was beginning to become deeper than he could previously imagine.  
  
---  
  
Eiri walked into class, late once again. She didn't even bother with an excuse; everyone knew. She sat at her desk quietly, stealing a glance at Kojirou as she sat. He raised an eyebrow and got his NAVI ready. Typing quickly, he sent her a message.  
  
___  
  
You're later than me... that's a first...  
  
___  
  
She glanced down, staring at her blinking NAVI.  
  
___  
  
I don't feel well x.x.  
  
___  
  
Just sick, or something else?  
  
___  
  
Many things...  
  
___  
  
Anything you wanna tell me about?  
  
___  
  
She drew with her finger on the desk, staring at the NAVI.  
  
___  
  
no.  
  
___  
  
She laid her head in her hand and looked absent-mindedly at the board.  
  
If it were anyone else, Kojirou probably wouldn't have bothered to answer the latest message. But this time he was worried.  
  
___  
  
Meet me at lunchtime, alright?  
  
___  
  
Sounds good...  
  
___  
  
She met his eyes and smiled lopsidedly at him. Kojirou had a worried look. He tried to smile, but it was useless. So the kid just started looking at the dreaded blackboard, hoping for lunchtime to come soon. Eiri continued half-note taking, but really paid no attention to the class.  
  
***  
  
Kojirou chose his favorite spot, the top of the building, and took Eiri there, holding her hand strongly all the way. When they were away from anyone else, Kojirou managed a smile and asked.  
  
"So, what's wrong, dear?"  
  
"Truthfully..." she said quietly. "I don't know. Something just seems so... very off."  
  
She looked out at the skyline, grabbing the chain link of the fence, letting the wind pull her hair up in loose curls. Kojirou reached out to fondle Eiri's hair. He got closer to her, embracing his friend softly. "Off, how?" he asked, a hint at a "big brother" tone in his voice.  
  
She paused. "I don't know... something Adam said this morning... it's... thrown me off."  
  
"Something to do with your baby?"  
  
"No... something about my family."  
  
By then the boy had an idea of who it concerned. Kojirou gritted his teeth as he remembered Eiri's description of Natsumi. Swallowing his building up anger, he waited for Eiri to continue.  
  
"He mentioned that I have no pictures of my sister... and I realize... I don't. He says that he's never met her... but I've seen them together." she tightened her grip on the fence. "And it confuses me..."  
  
Kojirou was at a loss for words. "Maybe she..." he shook his head. "No, forget it."  
  
***  
  
"I'm just asking cause you're the one I know with the most knowledge of the Wired."  
  
"Sorry, but I can't help you."  
  
"It is possible, isn't it?"  
  
"Maybe..."  
  
"Come on, Reine..."  
  
"It is, yes, possible." as to demonstrate her point, Lain's form vanished right before Kojirou's eyes, leaving him alone with the glowing walls. A moment later, she reappeared, wearing nothing but wires wrapping her body. "This girl may be haunting you from the Wired, or she might as well be indeed a ghost." Kissing Kojirou's pale lips, Lain vanished again, and he knew she wasn't coming back.  
  
***  
  
She turned to look at him. "What?"  
  
"Maybe... ... ... well..." he looked away from Eiri. "... maybe she's... just... ..."  
  
Eiri looked at him, her eyes showing her confusion. "She's what, Kojirou?"  
  
Kojirou's voice got low, barely audible. "...maybe she's a ghost... haunting you."  
  
She narrowed her eyes, trying to understand the situation... "Kojirou..." she paused. "That's... ludicrous... how could someone haunt me since I was born?"  
  
"Yeaown... I'm sorry. It's just that I heard the same about Yumi."  
  
Eiri glanced down at best she could at her feet, then gave up and looked out at the skyline once more.  
  
"But suppose..." Kojirou started. "Suppose she IS haunting you... no, forget it. This can't be true. Both with Yumi or Natsumi."  
  
"It's far too odd..." she said, almost silently.  
  
"It is... but..." Kojirou took his time with a little theory. "Maybe she's a part of you. The part of you who didn't want to get an abortion, the part of you who doesn't want to be with Adam... a big sister is in her place to interfere, so..."  
  
"Still, Kojirou, I don't see how I could imagine an older sister... or have an entire story of her life in my head if she doesn't exist."  
  
"Maybe she does, but only for you."  
  
She gripped the fence until her fingers caught and were cut by the cold metal. She pulled her hands away quickly, then looked back at Kojirou with cloudy eyes. "My sister is real." Her tone was serious. After sticking her fingers in her mouth, she walked over to a bench on the roof and sat, moping.  
  
"Wait, Eiri..." when Kojirou said that she was already away. He walked over to the bench where she was and sat down beside her. Gently pulling her, Kojirou made her lay her head on his lap. "I'm not saying she's not real. I'm just being lead by what Lain told me, sorry." 


	15. Layer 15 : Truths

It had taken planning... and patience... both traits that Nakita possessed in spades... but finally the little gig he had put together with the connivance of his younger brothers was ready to rock... keeping secret both the planning and his development of Hime's voice had... not been fun... and making the introduction LOOK impromptu... but his plans had fallen together... Nakita and Hime were seated at a table in Cyberia... with the maiden... unaware... of what Nakita had planned bar getting hilariously shitfaced...  
  
On time according to plan...  
  
"Bottle of vodka?"  
  
"Oh, sure, please." a pause "You have something special planned, Nakita? Something hat involves getting me drunk, maybe?"  
  
Nakita grinned. "You, me and at least two other people joining in..."  
  
Hime's eyes widened, which was uncommon enough. Trying to keep her composure, she just nodded, her mind now full of expectation. Nakita got up to get two bottles of vodka... swinging back by the table, he gave Hime one bottle and said he had to take a leak...  
  
Nakita had had heaps of practice bottling up nervousness... now... his stomach was bouncing off his insides... executing Operation Urinate did help calm him down... but... well... showtime...  
  
Cyberia's rarely used stage got cleared off... provoking comment among the patrons... Hime was now getting a clue as for what he had planned. And she liked it!  
  
Nakita returned from the toilet to the stage... mike in one hand... unopened vodka bottle in the other... he opened and sculled the bottle... eleven hundred and twenty five millilitres of vodka coursed down his gullet... the booze didn't stagger him...  
  
  
  
Throwing the vodka bottle to his left hand side, he turned to face the crowd and spoke, via the mike: "I'd like to dedicate this little gig to a certain special woman that I am privileged to know..."  
  
That part didn't cause any major sniggers.  
  
"...and that brave vodka bottle that just laid down its life so this gig could happen."  
  
That caused a few giggles, which were almost immediately drowned out by music with a dancy beat...  
  
Hime shifted to a place from which she could see the gig better. Smiling broadly, she waited for Nakita's certain to come voice show.  
  
As Nakita led off with "Come follow me"...  
  
... his younger brothers bodydumped in, perfectly synchronized, doing opposite shoulder rolls to roll up to their full and considerable heights...  
  
While a couple of bars of the music played, the twins reoriented themselves and Nakita... changed gears... so to speak...  
  
Hime had just recovered in time to hear her own voice sing.  
  
"I got all systems go  
  
Nothing standing in my way  
  
I should be far down the road but I'm not."  
  
"Something's holding me back  
  
Like a world war attack  
  
And I got you by my side but you're not."  
  
One single thought crossed the maiden's mind. /How can he do that?.../ The bodydump hadn't shocked her as much as it had affected the other people, but hearing herself sing, and well, was quite surprising.  
  
"Do you remember when  
  
We thought it was the wind  
  
A shooting star around the sky."  
  
"Do you remember when  
  
You were from heaven sent.  
  
I thought the wind could make me fly."  
  
Hime was shocked further when the twins cut loose... in harmony...  
  
"A-a-angels crying  
  
When you're far away from me  
  
Always trying  
  
I will make you see"  
  
For someone who knew the natural, thundering voice of the Iwakura brothers, hearing them sing was like watching the sky turn green. Playfully, Hime chastised herself for not remembering they are always full of surprises.  
  
While his brothers sang, Nakita had reset his voice back to normal...  
  
Twins: "A-a-angels crying"  
  
Nakita: (normal baritone): "When angels cry"  
  
Twins: "When you're far away from me  
  
No denying"  
  
Nakita: (normal baritone): "There's no denying"  
  
Twins: "We were meant to be."  
  
While the music played on, Nakita set his voice back to Hime's and got ready to rock and roll again.  
  
"I tumbled from the sky  
  
Where I was soaring so high  
  
I never thought that I could fall back down to the ground."  
  
"Somewhere along that ride  
  
I found that we could stop the tide  
  
It's time for me to buy another round."  
  
"Do you remember when  
  
We thought it was the wind  
  
A shooting star around the sky."  
  
"Do you remember when  
  
You were from heaven sent.  
  
I thought the wind could make me fly."  
  
The twins cut in as Nakita reset his voice...  
  
"A-a-angels crying  
  
When you're far away from me  
  
Always trying  
  
I will make you see"  
  
The twins kept going as Nakita set his voice back again...  
  
"Angels are cryin'  
  
Angels are cryin'  
  
Angels are cryin'..."  
  
Nakita: "I got all systems go  
  
Nothing's standing in my way  
  
I should be far down the road but I'm not"  
  
"Something's holding me back  
  
Like a world war attack  
  
And I got you by my side but you're not."  
  
The music started winding up to a coda, so here it went...  
  
Nakita ran forward toward the front of the stage... and jumped... Executing a double forward flip and 540 degree torso twist, he landed directly behind Hime, who had no idea as for what to say or do. She looked back, surprised, her eyes meeting Nakita with an inquiring look.  
  
Nakita had no bottle of plonk to help him now... so he swallowed his embarrassment and plowed on at flank speed... grasping Hime's chin in his hand and turning the maiden and her chair to face him... sapphire eyes with the intensity of lasers bored into Hime's own....  
  
For all she cared, the twins and, for that matter, everyone else present barring Nakita, could have taken running jumps at themselves...  
  
Back in his normal voice... Nakita finished the song...  
  
"There's no denying...  
  
We were meant to be..."  
  
He discarded the mike and kissed Hime, freshly stunning all present. She was always the one to break the kisses since Nakita had a lot more wind than her. But since the previous gig probably knocked some out of him, she figured for the first time she'd force Nakita to break a kiss. Nakita grinned around the kiss as he drew on his freediving experience... a detailed analysis would show that he actually recycled his once-breathed exhalations to give himself more usable oxygen... but who cared about crap like that at a moment like this?  
  
Certainly not the pair, or anyone present at Cyberia for that matter. All that mattered was the seemingly unending kiss, either if they were watching or participating.  
  
Just to be different... Nakita threw in a forward flip while holding onto Hime... his brothers watched in stupefaction... she felt weak with the sudden move, her head tilting a bit. If her mouth were free she would have gasped loudly, but as it was she could only steal some air from Nakita... which didn't seem to affect him...  
  
/If she wants me to top this for next year... it will have to end in tragedy... ... namely... I will have to abandon my physical body once more... ... and destroy my consciousness to ensure a return cannot occur.../  
  
***  
  
"Your peace can't be found, for you don't belong in this world."  
  
"Then where do I belong?"  
  
"Somewhere far away... in the new reality."  
  
"Lain, that's less funny than you think..."  
  
"I thought you weren't scared by anything..." she answered teasingly. Kojirou just frowned at that, which made Lain stop. "Still, that's what the fortune telling says."  
  
"Fine, then that's what it says. But what does it mean?"  
  
"You don't tell me all I should know, so I can't help."  
  
"Trust me, there's a lot you're better off not knowing."  
  
"No there isn't."  
  
"That's very much like you."  
  
  
  
***  
  
He had never quite understood what Lain saw in fortune telling, but it did work, and... Kojirou had to admit it, it was fun. As long as he didn't take it too seriously, cause this would be denying what he prized most, which was his freedom.  
  
"You still can't accept it, can you?"  
  
"Who's there?" the kid looked around but the voice still seemed out of nowhere.  
  
"You don't belong in this world. You belong with me."  
  
"No... not you again..."  
  
"And why not?" Yumi's ghostly, but definitely tempting form materialized before Kojirou, lighting up his empty, dark room. "I'm always by your side. Even if I wanted to, I couldn't stay away from you. It's only natural that I show up at times."  
  
"Please, just leave. I don't want you here."  
  
"You still don't understand, do you? We have no choice. I'll always be with you."  
  
"Get away, Yumi. Don't make me lose my mind."  
  
"I used to make you lose your mind and you liked it..."  
  
"..."  
  
"Is something wrong?"  
  
"YOU are what's wrong! Get away from me, I said! What does it take for me to be free from you? I ran away once, why can't I run away again?"  
  
"This time I'm stronger. I won't let you get away again."  
  
***  
  
Adam checked his watch. Eiri wouldn't be home for at least 6 hours minimum, but she usually stayed out with Kojirou for 2 hours or more after school ended. Confident, he decided to use her NAVI for his checking of her past.  
  
He signed on to the Wired and scoured until he found the database that he was looking for, a large database of obituaries in the Tokyo area. After typing in the name 'Tsugoyaki,' he was surprised to see that there were two deaths instead of one on the date that Eiri gave for her father's death. Two weeks later, an article about the deaths was in a local psychology magazine... and they were much different then Eiri told him...  
  
/Ryouji Tsugoyaki, a prominent psychologist in the area, shot his wife Marie-Lily, a nurse at the same hospital that her husband worked at, in their home, killing her in plain sight of their daughter, then took their daughter.../ Adam paused for a moment in his reading and scanned the obituary. /... slit her wrists and then committed suicide by shooting himself in the soft palate. Their daughter Eiriko, aged 14, managed to call paramedics before passing out from blood loss. Eiriko is now living with friends in the Beijing area, and is expected to return to Japan with them in the next few weeks... reports from the family seem to hint that Eiriko remembers nothing of the incident and has begun creating an alternate reality for herself. Police are investigating the cause of the incident, but have found no reason why Dr. Tsugoyaki killed his wife. Yi-Xue Hsu, a previous associate of Tsugoyaki's with whom Eiri is living, claims that her partner was acting oddly the week before the murder-suicide and that she believes that it was stress related. When asked whether she believed if Eiriko Tsugoyaki's reality creation was best for the girl, she stated that it would be 'more difficult and dangerous for Eiri to know the truth than to be content in her version of reality. Caomei [Hsu's daughter] and I will be encouraging her view.' For the time being, Hsu and a mix of her associates will be watching Eiriko. From the way that her case is progressing, however, Hsu says that she believes she will need other psychologists to aid the case.../  
  
"I could have told you anything in there, but you never asked, Noah," said a voice behind him.  
  
He turned around in horror as his true first name was uttered to see Yi- Xue, best known as Muqin to Eiri, standing in the doorway with her arms crossed. Her eyes were mad.  
  
"If you continue to integrate the truth with her reality, it will only lead to her destruction! Why are you doing this, Dr. Bradford?" she said.  
  
He looked at her, confused. For the first time, he noticed her voice. "Why did you trick me into coming here..." he said, glaring. "Natsumi?" 


	16. Layer 16 : Anniversary

"So, all kids have some sort of psychic power... this is very unbelievable if you ask me."  
  
"That's what the old man said."  
  
"So what's yours?"  
  
"Ah, yeaown. Like I have any."  
  
"You're ten years old... that's young enough, right?"  
  
"So, all kids have some sort of psychic power... this is very unbelievable if you ask me."  
  
"That's what the old man said."  
  
"So what's yours?"  
  
"Ah, yeaown. Like I have any."  
  
"You're ten years old... that's young enough, right?"  
  
"Well, if I have any power, I still don't know about it."  
  
"Does your irresistible sex-appeal count?"  
  
"Oh, yeaown! Thanks, sis! I almost forgot about it!"  
  
"See?"  
  
"Now THAT'S power!"  
  
"Who cares about moving things around and reading thoughts?"  
  
"Exactly!"  
  
***  
  
Orphanage Light Wings... accused of being just a mask for a pedophile group, it would have been closed, but it burned to the ground before that. Apparently everyone involved with it was killed in the fire. Unfortunately over a hundred children died as well.  
  
***  
  
Cyberia  
  
While the twins were either getting or trying to get shitfaced as the case may have been... Hime saw... an image... of the good doctor Iwakura.  
  
She was actually seeing double...  
  
Like his younger brothers, Nakita was one of three identical triplets (yes, that's what usually happens, three triplets... sheesh... that's up there with saying "Occifer, I only had two beers" while holding up 4 fingers).  
  
One surviving...  
  
One lost in a KIDS-style mishap...  
  
One stillborn...  
  
It appears the elder set was following the younger set's lead - the member lost to the KIDS mishap... wants out of the Wired.  
  
***  
  
"Dr. Noah Bradford. It sounds so much better than Adam Langley, student," Yi-Xue said dryly and then took a sip of the coffee sitting in front of her.  
  
"Why didn't you tell me that you were 'Natsumi,' Dr. Hsu?" Adam said as he sat down across the kitchen table from Muqin.  
  
"Because you, my boy, would tell Eiri that her family doesn't exist. The only reason I'm here right now is that Caomei happened to hear your conversation with Eiri last week," she looked right into Adam's eyes. "You can't let her know what really happened."  
  
Adam glared at her. "She needs to know."  
  
"Not now, not in her condition. Trust me... she seems so normal one moment, then something throws off her world and she..." Yi-Xue grew silent. "Just trust me."  
  
The room grew silent as they both heard the click of the front door opening. Adam stood and looked out of the kitchen door just in time to have Eiri run into him. She looked up at him with watery eyes and then buried her face in Adam's shirt. Her arms wrapped around his hips and her hands flexed and unflexed as they grabbed the ends of his shirt. Adam looked back at Muqin for a second and then put one of his arms around her waist and putting one of his hands on her stomach.  
  
"What's wrong, honey?" said Muqin.  
  
Eiri lifted her head from Adam's chest and looked over at Muqin.  
  
"Mama..." she said, reaching one of her hands out to Muqin as she  
  
moved over to the couple.  
  
"Come here, little Eiri," said Muqin, pushing Adam away lightly and taking Eiri into her arms. When she had a tight grip on Eiri, Muqin looked at Adam and mouthed /something happened to her world/. "What happened, Eiri- chan?"  
  
"Who is Natsumi? Where is she? Why don't I have pictures to show to  
  
Adam?" she screamed.  
  
"Eiri, we had this conversation a week ago. Why are you just now asking about it?" Adam said suddenly. Muqin shot daggers at him.  
  
"Darling, let me give you some of that infusion and then I want you to go to sleep. How is the baby doing?" Muqin said as she led Eiri to a seat.  
  
"I think it's fine. I haven't been to a doctor since I found out I was pregnant," said Eiri softly.  
  
Muqin nearly dropped the glass in her hand and Adam's jaw fell open.  
  
"You said you were going every week to see both Dr. Iwakura and your OB- GYN. Where have you been going?" Adam nearly screamed.  
  
"I don't know. Around," Eiri said, looking down at her hands. "I don't like doctors."  
  
"So... you don't like Yi-Xue... or... Muqin?" Adam said.  
  
Muqin was shaking her head furiously, but Eiri looked up at Adam with a smile on her face. "What do you mean? Muqin isn't a doctor... she's a teacher. She worked with my father at the Daigaku before he died in the car crash."  
  
Adam looked at Eiri in the eyes, his mouth slightly open. "I forgot... what happened to your mother."  
  
"She died of pneumonia a week after I was born... why are you asking me all of this?"  
  
"... Natsumi?"  
  
Her eyes grew clouded. "My older sister... she lives in Vermont. Her husband died a year ago."  
  
Her eyes closed and she let her head fall against the counter. Muqin came around the counter and picked her up, then headed off to Eiri's room with Adam behind her.  
  
"When her world is disrupted..."  
  
***  
  
Unfortunately, they've had to break the kiss. Fortunately, that could be called a masterpiece of timing. Hime got her now running out air, and with a sweet smile, whispered "That... was lovely."  
  
Nakita shrugged... "I try my best." His voice had taken on a weird choral quality... sort of like he was using all the voices he knew at once....  
  
"And now I have to think of a good way to thank you for that..."  
  
"You already have." Nakita didn't seem to notice the riders his voice now had.  
  
"Hey... the gig is over, right?" Hime asked frowning.  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"Nothing... it just feels weird when you sound like someone else. But it's fun too, so I'm not complaining." the maiden answered smiling.  
  
***  
  
Meanwhile, the twins installed themselves at the bar. No one was game enough to speak up re: possible age problems  
  
***  
  
"Well... it wasn't easy practicing that in secret." Again the chorality. Nakita grinned, "Though I did confuse Kojirou a few times."  
  
"Ah, I'm sure he didn't mind... but you're confusing ME, now..."  
  
"With what?"  
  
Hime frowned. "Hm. Shift back to your original voice."  
  
"I have." But the chorality remained. Hime started giggling at that.  
  
Nakita looked up... and the color drained from his face... Hime kept smiling, and she decided to explain. "You're stuck with the other voices, like that other time..."  
  
Nakita shook his head... "It's not that... I'm... worried... about..."  
  
"Then..." Hime trailed off, an inquiring look on her face.  
  
"Turn around..."  
  
"Alright..." she did.  
  
A dim.... flickering... indefinite image....  
  
... stole what little was left of Hime's wind. She gasped, blinked, and turned back to Nakita, words failing her at the moment.  
  
The good doctor was as surprised as Hime was...  
  
...because the image was indeed...  
  
...Iwakura Nakita... ... ...  
  
...times two...  
  
She was pale. And out of what to say. Or do. So it can only be assumed it was fate that led Hime to walk closer to the images.  
  
Meanwhile... Nakita bailed... at max speed...  
  
The twins looked up from their bar stools... took in the little tableau.... and muttered... "We'll drink to that" before emptying their glasses.  
  
Hime still tried to rationalize what she was doing. Obviously it was useless. But she did reach out to touch the illusions.  
  
They moved back, away from her... ... and Hime could only stare as they did. She didn't think of turning to look back at the real Nakita... or who she thought was the real one... oh. Yes, now she remembered. He had mentioned a twin brother... ONE twin brother. One DEAD twin brother... bloody hell.  
  
Meanwhile, the twins drank to that.  
  
It took over twenty minutes of catatonic state for Hime's mind to shift back to its usual activity. Realizing Nakita was nowhere to be found, and not blaming him, she went for the bar, hoping to get some clarifying from the other twins.  
  
They were doing their damnedest to get shitfaced... we'll drink to that...  
  
"So... do you have any idea where your brother is right now?"  
  
"No idea." Kannai answered. Tak said nothing and emptied his glass again.  
  
"And as for why he ran away like that?"  
  
Tak shrugged... Kannai drank to that.  
  
Hime sighed... kept silent... then started laughing. The twins were pretty damn right. She sat down and asked for a bottle of vodka herself.  
  
***  
  
Something akin to a miracle had happened.... Kannai was passed out, drunk. Of course, given the mood of the previous hour or so, Tak and Hime drank to that.  
  
Tak was a little lightheaded... and annoyed... he'd been imbibing hard liquor at a constant rate for over an our and the room wasn't even spinning yet. The same certainly didn't apply to Hime. She was in the verge of passing out. Excusing herself and avoiding Kannai's body on the floor, she went for the bathroom.  
  
Tak shook his head... he wasn't going to get tanked anytime in the next day...  
  
Hime figured she had to go home. The whole getting drunk enough to mistake the mirror for someone else had been fun, but it was over. She washed her face, applied just a bit of makeup and left, still staggering, but just a little.  
  
Tak had quit drinking..... "Want to head out?"  
  
"Yeaown, but do we leave Kannai here?"  
  
"Nope." Tak bent down and lifted his unconscious twin up and over his shoulder. "Let's go."  
  
Hime paid for the booze and off they went. She checked outside to see if Nakita's car was anywhere near. He'd taken it when he left @ a high dx/dt.  
  
There had been a few stares as Tak threw Kannai over his shoulder like someone would hoist a schoolbag... and seeing Hime's not too steady progress... he scooped her up as well.  
  
She would have said something like "thanks, but you really don't need to do that", but she didn't bother. Tak didn't seem to be making the least bit of effort anyway.  
  
***  
  
There was one question that Tak wanted to ask Hime, so he had waited until after he had dumped Kannai on a couch and set her down rather more gently...  
  
"Can I ask you something?"  
  
"Anything..."  
  
"Yeah... is Nakita... bisexual?"  
  
Hime scratched her head... "Not that I know of."  
  
"Would it bother you if he was?"  
  
"No... not at all. It would be even more fun, I guess."  
  
***  
  
"Wake up, kids. I made breakfast!" Kojirou's voice greeted the trio.  
  
Kannai's balled fist barely missed Kojirou... "Not so looouuud..."  
  
"Hoe.. sorry..." Kojirou sweatdropped. He turned to Tak and Hime. "You two coming?"  
  
"Yeah... he's just hungover..." Tak answered. "He passed out drunk last night... lucky twerp... I drank more than he did."  
  
The kid raised an eyebrow. "What was the occasion?"  
  
"Nakita's and Hime's one year anniversary..."  
  
After espying the look on Hime's face...  
  
"Apparently it was a surprise to Hime to hear all three of us sing... well."  
  
A large grin slashed the boy's face, "Tell me you got that on tape."  
  
"From the bodydumps to the forward flip Nakita did while kissing Hime."  
  
"Alright! Now, then, how about breakfast?"  
  
"You DID make enough for two very hungry 7 foot tall 200 kilo teenagers, I hope?"  
  
"Of course." Kojirou answered confidently.  
  
"Well, let the demolition begin..."  
  
When they got in the kitchen it became obvious that Kojirou hadn't made anything. He had called and ordered food. But either way worked with the giants.  
  
While Tak was eating, Kannai got up and joined him..... by the time that had happened, reordering was needed.  
  
"So where's the doc, anyway?" Kojirou asked while they waited for the food.  
  
"He ... *scarf* left in a *chomp* bit of a *swallow* hurry."  
  
"Oh..." the kid blinked "Was something wrong?"  
  
Tak shrugged.  
  
"Well, that's Nakita... he's full of surprises..." Hime said remembering the previous night.  
  
"You gonna order more food?" the Takman asked.  
  
"Your call... you think you need more?"  
  
"I won't, but Kannai will..."  
  
"Send in, then."  
  
Kojirou stood up, went for the phone. Before he started dialing, "What do you kids want?"  
  
"Just order what you ordered before." Kannai answered.  
  
Kojirou went for Italian food... loads of it... strange enough, it took much less time then everyone assumed. As soon as the receiver was down, a knock was heard. Hime promptly stood up and went for the door. It wasn't the delivery person, but someone much more expected by her. None other than the good doctor himself.  
  
He didn't look too crash hot... torn clothing with some blood stains, liberal application of the bruise palette...  
  
Hime frowned like few times before... she would have hugged Nakita, but she was afraid of hurting him. Instead, she just led him in, asking what had happened. He didn't so much walk in as collapse in. Hime suppressed a scream. The others, attracted by the THUD he had made on the floor, ran for the door to find Nakita, seemingly dead, on the floor.  
  
Tak motored... Kannai kept eating. Seeing as the Takman had already scooped his brother up, Kojirou and Hime just lead him upstairs. They figured he needed a good cold bath, which Hime was more than happy to give.  
  
As Tak carried his brother up, he called up the stairs, "Better make that bath a warm one."  
  
***  
  
Two men walked down the halls of Tokyo University academia, one tall, Caucasian, and in a black suit and mirrorshades. The other was Japanese, shorter, and wore the same outfit. Their hands were planted firmly in their pockets, and a cigarette was held firmly between the lips of the tall one, dangling a ragged silent trail of smoke behind him like a phantom trailer.  
  
It was strangely quiet, nothing moved besides them. As they went, they saw a student hurrying to class. For someone in a hurry, he was remarkably graceful, moving quickly and smoothly. He shot the pair only the most passing glance, but the short one made a gesture for him to stop. The student slowed to a stop.  
  
"Something you need?" he asked pleasantly. The tall one pulled a worn photo from his pocket and held it in front of the student.  
  
"Ever seen this man?" he asked. The student peered hard at it, his eyes narrowing in possible recognition before he finally answered.  
  
"Nope, sorry. He do something wrong?" asked the student.  
  
"Not at all." said the short one. "It's just that he's an old friend and we've been looking for him." The student shrugged.  
  
"Sorry." he said, and made ready to resume jogging.  
  
"Wait!" called the tall one. "What's your name?"  
  
"My name?"  
  
"Yeah, in case we meet again."  
  
"Call me Yousuke." he shrugged. "I've gotta go, excuse me please." he replied, brushing past the pair. Once he turned a corner, the tall one spat out his cigarette, crushing it beneath his shoe. 


	17. Layer 17 : Dipolar

A normal routine found itself back at the Tsugoyaki residence after final exams. Caomei had returned a little over a month earlier when Yi-Xue left for China, and had found her belongings in the guest room... and the guest sleeping with Eiri. Every morning, Eiri and Caomei woke up early to start breakfast. Caomei and Eiri took turns reading the newspaper to the Japanese- illiterate Adam. At night, they would recount their days in Mandarin Chinese over mugs of Chai tea while sitting in the living room. Every other night, there were Japanese reading lessons for Adam taught by Eiri.  
  
One night during the talking time, Caomei exclaimed how tired she was and went up to her room. Adam and Eiri sat in silence for a few moments, sipping the Chai.  
  
"I've... been lying to you, Eiri," he said, half-reluctantly.  
  
Eiri put her mug down. "What do you mean, dear?"  
  
Adam shuddered at her last word. "I've been lying the entire time that I've been here. The reason I know Iwakura Nakita is that we belong to the same company. We both work in a psychology group. My... my name isn't even Adam Langley... it's Noah Bradford."  
  
Eiri stared at him with wide eyes. "Psychology... but..."  
  
"Your... sister hired me to come here. But... you haven't done many things worth mentioning. You seem to have cured yourself..." Noah lied, not knowing how to tell her that her reality was a lie.  
  
He almost smiled at her, but one look into her eyes showed that this was not a time for smiles.  
  
"What about us? Has that all been part of the lie too? Telling me that you would be here for the baby and me?" tears were running down her face as she lightly placed her hands on her stomach.  
  
"No! No... that's all real, darling." Noah held her hand. "That I can promise."  
  
Her eyes softened when she saw the mounting fear in his eyes. "At least you have brought the truth into the light." Eiri said, half-smiling at him.  
  
"Are you sure about that? I think we need to talk a bit more..." Noah said. "About your family."  
  
"My family...?" Eiri said. "I've already told you everything."  
  
"Everything you think you know. I want to tell you the truth," he said lightly to her, then took her left hand in his. "Your mother didn't die soon after you were born. Your father didn't die in a car accident... your father killed your mother then killed himself. He tried to kill you, but you called the medics before you passed out. Yi-Xue hasn't ever been a teacher. She's a highly-acclaimed psychiatrist... and your father was her partner. You've never had any siblings besides the one that your mother was carrying when she was killed. Natalia and Aeli don't exist... they are just figments of your imagination."  
  
He looked into her eyes. They were clear with horror. She took her hand out of his and folded both hands in her lap.  
  
"How do you feel about this?" he said in a psychiatrist's plying tone.  
  
"I..." her voice was soft and scratchy. "I'm tired... I'm going to go to bed."  
  
"Maybe we should talk about this, Eiri..." he said. "I want to be sure that you're okay. I was called here by Yi-Xue because she was having problems with you, but I haven't seen anything but your false reality to hint to me that anything is wrong. There's been nothing worthy of mention."  
  
She stood quietly and walked to their room, not speaking. He watched her regretfully as the door closed. After a few minutes, he gathered the three mugs on the table and took them into the kitchen before heading to bed. When he got into bed, Eiri was asleep, her pillow damp with tears. He kissed her eyes lightly then fell asleep.  
  
***  
  
A few nights later, the confused Eiri laid in her bed looking up at the canopy listlessly. Noah was beside Eiri snoring with his back to her. Several of the cats had crawled into bed during the night, but most of them crowded around Noah and his warmth rather than fight Eiri in her lust to get out from under the blankets. She turned her head and looked out of the window to the sliver of the moon falling under the horizon and accidently caught the glow of her NAVI with its digital clock and the most recent Kojirou-message flashing fondly. Whenever she received a message from Kojirou, she kept it until a new one arrived for it made her feel that there was an unbreaking string holding them together in the digital world. An idea flashing in her head, she slipped quietly out of bed and out of the room. Quickly putting on some slippers and a long black hooded cloak, Eiri went into the garage and got into Noah's new car, a BMW CS1. Although his confessions had unnerved her, at least she knew now that he got his money for these cars from a reputable source and not the Mafia as she previously thought. Although she didn't have a license, she decided to drive. It was too cold for the Vespa and it would take too long to walk.  
  
The Friday night Tokyo was a lively place. Eiri took a detour through downtown to see the foolish people in platform boots and watch the Dance Dance Revolution players who actually knew what they were doing. The lights of Tokyo were fabulous and the music pulsing through the streets was a rush. Once she left the downtown, however, the sounds grew progressively quieter until she reached the Mansion. She parked on the street in front of the house and walked up slowly. As she got to the front door, she could hear the sounds of people walking around and enjoying themselves inside, so she rang the doorbell hoping that maybe Hime or Kojirou would answer. She heard the door click open and was pleased when Kojirou was the one who answered.  
  
"Kojirou..." she said, leaning down to kiss him on the cheek. "Do you mind if I stay the night here?"  
  
"Ah, Eiri, my dear... I was just thinking about you!" Kojirou said with a smile. Of course it was a bit awkward to hear that from a leather clad, blood stained, soaked in sweat kid... but Eiri was adapting.  
  
She smiled broadly at him and pulled him into a tight hug. "I couldn't sleep, so I figured I'd come here. Perhaps I will be more comfortable here with you..."  
  
Kojirou was lost in Eiri's arms. His eyes closed, he felt her soft scent, her warm body so gently over his... "Well I know I'll sleep like a cat tonight..."  
  
"Oh, of course. Please." He stepped sideways and indicated her the way in.  
  
She walked in, looking around as she always did. "How's business tonight?"  
  
Kojirou closed the door, then walked up to Eiri, putting his arm around her waist. "Heh... normal I guess, with the difference that I don't think I've ever seen so many people around the twins."  
  
Eiri began running her fingers through Kojirou's hair without realizing it. She stared blankly down the corridor and then spoke. "What are they doing tonight that makes them such an attraction?"  
  
The boy purred at Eiri's caress." Well, it's not what they are doing as much as who. Tonight they are doing none other than my sis." Kojirou answered with a wink. "If you want to watch, I can take you there. My treat."  
  
"I'd love to..." Eiri said deeply.  
  
"Then come here." He said taking Eiri's hand and dragging her down a stair. In the way, they crossed many people that looked with envy at Eiri. Kojirou just smiled at them all.  
  
"From the looks I'm getting, some of these people have fetishes for pregnant red-haired teenagers..." Eiri whispered into Kojirou's ear.  
  
Kojirou giggled at that. "I wouldn't be surprised..." he whispered back, and took the opportunity to lick Eiri's earlobe. She rubbed against his face and giggled at the sensation of the lick.  
  
  
  
And there it went, Kojirou's mind into overdrive...  
  
  
  
He felt numb, weak, but not too out of control to wrap his arms around Eiri's neck. The kid closed his eyes, his lips longing for Eiri's.  
  
Eiri looked down at Kojirou, her eyes half-closed. Suddenly, she leaned in and harshly clamped her lips on his. Kojirou was now locked, both physically and mentally. He hugged Eiri closer as his hands slipped down to caress her body.  
  
Her tongue danced with his, the sound of the leather whipping in the background almost a push for her to go deeper.  
  
Kojirou was determined to go one step further. He wanted a heavenly kiss with a touch of pain. Eiri barely realized when his teeth rubbed her lower lip... then...  
  
She gasped and pushed back from him suddenly, bringing her hand up to her lip. She'd never been bitten by anyone else and it was a surprise to her, but she could not determine whether it was pleasant or not.  
  
A thin stream of blood trickled out of the side of her mouth and she stood transfixed for a moment before rubbing it off with the back of her hand.  
  
She looked at the back of her hand, then rubbed the side of his face with it before leaning back into the kiss.  
  
Kojirou stopped her by putting his index finger on her lips. He closed his eyes parted his lips softly. It was obvious he wanted her to bite him back.  
  
She licked her bloody teeth and nodded just slightly. She nibbled on his finger and after he moved it, she continued.  
  
Her first bites were simple nibbles to arouse him, but once she had him completely relaxed, she bit his lower lip with everything in her.  
  
Kojirou moaned... purred... or something in between. Whatever it was, it was a sign of sheer pleasure. With a broad smile, he put his hand on Eiri's cheek and locked his lips with hers.  
  
This was a new sensation for Eiri, and a well known, treasured sensation for Kojirou. The pressure of their lips together was making their blood overflow.  
  
Eiri felt a bit of blood run down her chin, but it just added to the sensation of the moment. She noticed in the back of her mind that they were being watched, but it was a rush for her to have people watching her doing something that seemed so randomly odd to her.  
  
In response to the onlookers, Eiri put her hand on Kojirou's back and pulled him in closer, then used the other hand to comb her fingers lustfully through his hair.  
  
Kojirou took the cue... he wrapped his arms around Eiri's shoulders, clawing her left one, and her waist, lowering his hand to fondle her legs.  
  
Eiri decided to be the one to break the kiss. She slowly parted her lips from his, keeping her teeth on his lip and slowly pulling his lip out before letting go and licking her lips whilst looking at him.  
  
/I love you.../  
  
Kojirou always thought that when he kissed Eiri. But still, he couldn't bring himself to say it. But at that moment, he didn't care. He just opened his eyes and smiled.  
  
***  
  
Darkness.  
  
The girl awakens for reasons unknown. Downstairs  
  
she  
  
walks. OBLIVIOUS.  
  
"Kyou wa watashi no tanjoubi desu yo~!" Singsongy. "Jyuu-shi sai desu!"  
  
Runs to her parents' room.  
  
[Oblivious CHILD. Not SAFE in your world?]  
  
Parents not in bed. Giggling, red curls boun cing.  
  
Races to the bathroom,  
  
bathtub.  
  
  
  
"Mama! Watashi no tanjoubi desu! Atashi..." she stops.  
  
  
  
Red, her mother's hair.  
  
Red, the stream from her mother's mouth.  
  
Red, the water in the bathtub.  
  
Red, the HOLE in her mother's forehead.  
  
  
  
"Mummy...?" she backs up slowly, her eyes wide and hand clasped over the mouth.  
  
She runs  
  
out of the bedroom, living room blindly. [oblivious girl]  
  
Kitchen,  
  
father chopping.  
  
Girl,  
  
eyes full of tears.  
  
"Papa... mama wa... mama wa..." Grabs father, tight hug... opens eyes.  
  
  
  
Red, her father's clothes.  
  
Red, her father's hands.  
  
  
  
"Boku no adeyaka na musume..." her father's eyes INSANE behind his glasses.  
  
Dark brown hair falls wet in his face.  
  
He rubs the side of her pale soft delicate sensitive tear-stained  
  
face. Fondly. Then.  
  
The knife falls. Searing hot pain in her side.  
  
Large hands GRAB her. Knife slices bluish-pale skin on slender wrists.  
  
She falls, father falls... mother fell. [oblivious little eiri, our daughter, our love, die with us. Jyuu-shi. Shi.]  
  
Bang.  
  
Red, the wall.  
  
  
  
Eiri's face contorted in mental agony and she tossed and turned before finally awaking and screaming, grabbing the closest thing near her closer. She held Kojirou as close as she possibly could, panting heavily and her eyes wide, sweat beading on her brow. She squeezed her eyes closed tightly and began sobbing loudly.  
  
Kojirou had his breath stolen. In pure instinct, he hugged Eiri softly, running his hands through her hair.  
  
"Eiri... calm down... it's alright... it's alright now..." he murmured gently... "... I won't let anything hurt you..."  
  
"Noah was right... he didn't lie to me..." she murmured almost incoherently. "Papa killed Mama... he... tried to kill me... I... didn't try... to kill myself... these scars aren't mine..."  
  
She was rocking lightly, staring blankly at nothing in particular. Kojirou held her shoulders, trying to look directly into Eiri's eyes. He breathed deeply.  
  
"Eiri, are you listening?"  
  
She tipped her head slightly to look in his direction but kept the same blank look. "Did you know...?"  
  
Kojirou shook his head slowly. He was completely lost.  
  
"I thought... that he was lying to me. My father didn't kill my mother..." her voice was a rough yet singsongy whisper. "But I saw it all... what... I hadn't seen for years... forgotten, hidden... he said it was all over the news... but... no one has ever told me... and it was only three years ago... how did everyone forget in three years..." she grabbed one of his arms and looked him straight in the eyes. "How did everyone forget, Kojirou...?"  
  
"I don't know, dear... I feel like I don't know anything..." Kojirou refused to lower his eyes.  
  
Eiri looked at the people around them who were still watching Hime and the twins. She sat up straight.  
  
"Can you walk?"  
  
"I think so..." she said softly.  
  
"Then come with me. You need to rest, alright?" Kojirou embraced her gently, then he let go and gestured for them to leave the room.  
  
She nodded barely and slowly left the room with Kojirou.  
  
The people inside felt a mix of curiosity and envy... but nobody dared stand in their way.  
  
***  
  
Only minutes later, Eiri sat spooned in Kojirou's lap on the roof of the Mansion. Although close to the city, they could see the stars. They both looked at them quietly, Eiri leaning back onto Kojirou in an effort to achieve perfect comfort. It was a bit brisk outside, but neither seemed to care, as they were both absorbed in the moment. The silence was broken by Kojirou as his curiosity overtook him.  
  
"Now... can you tell me what happened in detail?"  
  
"It was my 14th birthday... I ran downstairs to see Mama and Papa because we would always have my birthday breakfast with each other... but they weren't in bed..." she closed her eyes. "I went into the bathroom and I saw Mama... the water in the bathtub was crimson. There was a hole in her head... I thought that someone had murdered her... I went to find Papa to see if he was all right..."  
  
"I thought your mother had died when you were a kid..."  
  
"I... thought she did..." Eiri said in quiet awe. "Noah said... I created my own world so that I didn't have to face the real one..."  
  
Kojirou scratched his head. "Eh? Who's Noah?"  
  
She opened her eyes half-way then looked down. "He lied to me about that... Adam isn't Adam Langley... his name is Noah Bradford... a psychiatrist. He was sent to... spy on me."  
  
"What about... your sister? Is she the one who hired him?" Kojirou was already afraid of the answer.  
  
"I don't have a sister..." she said quite softly. "Caomei's mother pretended she was my sister to pull Noah here."  
  
The sudden realization brought tears to Kojirou's eyes. "Then... you're... all alone..."  
  
She fell silent. Her eyes closed once again, but she did not cry. She crossed her arms over her chest. "I suppose I am..."  
  
Kojirou wrapped his arms around Eiri and hugged her tightly. "No, you're not." he looked up and tried to smile.  
  
She leaned back against Kojirou fondly. "You're right... I have you, the baby, the cats... ah, and Noah."  
  
"Hm, and what about Caomei? I haven't seen her in a while, come to think of it."  
  
"She's one back to Beijing for a bit."  
  
"And... is she also for you?"  
  
"When she's not in China." She looked up at the sky. "I don't understand... why they just didn't tell me the truth from the beginning... making me live a lie... it's not like the illusion could last forever."  
  
"True, no illusion lasts forever... still... they probably thought the truth would be too much for you."  
  
"And it's not too much for me now?" she sat up. "If I've been lulled into this... false sense of security... and then find out that my parents died because one killed the other and then tried to kill me.... then it shall alarm me even more! I'm confused... I don't know where the lies end and where the truth begins...."  
  
"How are you gonna ask Yi-Xue... that's her name, right? ... about this?"  
  
"I don't want to..." she said. "I don't think I can trust her anymore."  
  
"I know, I know.. still... I think you should. You have the right to know the truth, and she can't lie anymore. I think she'll realize that. Besides... that's your only way to know the truth."  
  
"I don't... want to..." she put her hands on either side of her head, then stood.  
  
"Wait... Eiri..." Kojirou reached out in vain.  
  
She stepped away from him. Her eyes closed tightly. "I'm... going to go..." Suddenly, her hands dropped from the sides of her head. She stood up straight and looked right at Kojirou. She smiled at him. "I should be getting home. It is late, and I am sure that someone is worried about me, ne?" she held her hand out to him. "Will you lead me out?" She laughed a bit.  
  
Kojirou was unable to force a smile. "Sleep here, Eiri... I don't feel like letting you stay at home right now."  
  
She shook her head vigorously, the same random grin across her face. "No, I'm sure that Mr. Langley is waiting. He does worry so about me. I don't know why... he's just so overprotective. So... where is the door? I always get lost."  
  
"Eiri?" Kojirou widened his eyes. "No... bloody hell no... please, Eiri. Stay here with me." Kojirou asked with pleading eyes.  
  
"Please, Kojirou-kun... I want to go home," she said. "What if Natsumi has come home and I don't know it? Her visits are ever so short... fleeting."  
  
"Natsumi..." Kojirou echoed.  
  
"Come on! I don't even know what time it is! It must be so late!" she held out her hands again. "Please, show me the way out."  
  
He walked up to Eiri and hugged her. "Alright... this way."  
  
She smiled broadly and took his hand. "Thank you."  
  
He led her slowly to the exit. His steps weak, his mind weak... his heart being thorn... still, he smiled.  
  
Once they reached the exit, Eiri turned to Kojirou. "How did I get here?" She pulled a set of keys from her pocket and then looked at them. "Oh..."  
  
Kojirou was in the verge of crying. "You came here cause you said you couldn't sleep... don't you remember? Anything?"  
  
"I couldn't sleep? Really?" she smiled more and looked down, laughing softly.  
  
"That's what you told me, at least... maybe you just wanted to see me." Kojirou winked at her.  
  
She grinned at him. "You're a feisty one, Kojirou-kun." she reached out. "Oi... you should put something on that lip. I think you bit it." She opened the door with the keys in her hand. "I'll see you later, Kojirou- kun."  
  
"Alright... good night, then, dear."  
  
Eiri looked down at the keys as she walked away, finding the car and then driving away.  
  
Kojirou closed the gates behind him. He didn't bother locking them. Instead, he just walked to the kitchen. He needed to injure himself. Badly. 


	18. Layer 18 : Comatose

I never thought I'd see anything like that...  
  
My Eiri has gone insane... right before my eyes.  
  
And there was nothing I could do.  
  
And probably there'll never be.  
  
I can feel myself getting weak from all the Red Suffering I've prepared with my own blood.  
  
***  
  
"Kojirou... aren't you going to bed?"  
  
"No, onee-chan... not now..."  
  
"What's wrong with you?" the maiden looked worriedly at her brother.  
  
"Eiri..."  
  
Hime widened her eyes. "What happened to her?"  
  
Kojirou looked down. "You know when everything you've believed turns out to be one big lie? What's left to do then, sis?" he smiled bitterly. "I'm sorry... this is just... too much for me..."  
  
Hime walked closer to Kojirou and put her arms around his shoulders. "Get a cold bath and go to sleep, honey. It won't help Eiri to hurt yourself like this."  
  
Kojirou leaned against his sister, his body weak from blood loss. She helped him walk to the bathroom and cleaned the cuts that spread all over his body.  
  
"Onee-chan?"  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"Thank you... I probably wouldn't have stopped."  
  
"I know. You don't know when to stop."  
  
The kid smiled at that. "Yeaown, you can talk..."  
  
***  
  
"I'd like twenty black roses, please. And a white one."  
  
"Twenty one roses? That's a lot of love, little boy."  
  
"Yes it is." Kojirou grinned. /And that's not all.../  
  
When the bouquet was ready, Kojirou clawed his left forearm strongly, leaving the blood to lightly taint the white petals. He gave the clerk Eiri's address and didn't bother sending a card with the flowers.  
  
***  
  
Rensei had been working for a long time now... fixing up people and adding his art to their bodies. But he felt he was about to come across something different when that tanned kid crossed the studio's door. He had a determined look in his eyes. The doctor looked at him for a short while, trying to guess what he was up to. Without getting to a conclusion, he smiled and asked.  
  
"Yes, can I help you, young man?"  
  
Sid bowed, unconsciously a martial artists bow, with one hand covering a fist, held at chest level. He spoke in his still fairly new Japanese. "Greetings. Have come to inquire about having some *special*, *custom* work done." He said, putting as much innuendo into his flat, angry sounding voice as he could.  
  
Doctor Rensei scratched his long beard and bowed back. "How you got to know about it?"  
  
"Contacts." He said simply, not wishing to give too much away. "People who prefer to remain anonymous." He added. "And some former patients of yours..." He finished.  
  
"That's good enough for me." Rensei went to get the "closed" sign for the studio. After he had the doors closed, he led Sid to the back of it, and opening a secret passage on a wall, indicated him the way down an unexpected clean corridor. "Come in... we can talk in privacy there."  
  
Sid let his eyes rove over the entranceway. Finding no hidden traps, he stepped in, making sure to keep one hand on the switchblade he kept in his pocket. The doctor appeared nice enough, but Sid knew from experience that it was always best to be cautious. After a short walk, the two arrived at their destination, a large, well lit room packed with medical instruments and electronic parts. Still, it wasn't messy. Everything was perfectly set in order. The doctor got chairs for both of them.  
  
"Now, what exactly do you have in mind?"  
  
"That depends on what's medically feasible. First, can you implant this?" He replied, pulling something small and electronic from his pocket. The tiny NAVI was a model of engineering. Folded up, it encompassed only half his palm. Sid unfolded it to reveal an lcd screen, and a miniature keyboard, with keys so small they had to be press with toothpicks. An eraserhead that could be pressed to click it sat in the middle of the keys. Sid held it up for Rensei to see.  
  
"Ah, cybernetics... now I see." He looked curiously at the small jewel. Even in his experience, he had never seen anything like that. "You made this yourself?"  
  
Sid decided to go out on a limb. "Stole it, actually." Sid said deciding to trust the doctor. Tachibana had been dumping its industrial byproducts in the river that ran parallel to his old neighborhood. Sid felt no sense of duty to them. "Must be somewhere discreet, preferably the chest or upper thigh, and it must not cause ill effects when struck or submerged. Can you do that?" Sid said.  
  
"No, kid, I can do better than that." the old man answered. "And if you know where to get good gadgets like this one I don't think you'll have to worry about paying."  
  
"Arigato gozaimasu, Doctor, but this wasn't gotten at the consent of its owner. But if you don't mind acquiring your stuff that way we can surely work something out." He said. Sid wondered if the doctor sympathized with the resistance.  
  
"Hm..." the doctor grinned. "That sounds good. But first and foremost let's have a look at your body. We need to know if it can handle what I have in mind."  
  
Sid considered that for a moment. Stripping in front of a stranger (or anyone else for that matter) was new to him. "Hai. What needs to be taken off?" He said.  
  
"Just take off your shirt and lie down there," he gestured towards an operating table. "I'll take care of the rest."  
  
Sid did as told, tossing his shirt and jacket somewhere he could see if the doctor made a grab for them. Shirtless on the operating table, he mentally catalogued all the equipment, while he waited for the doctor.  
  
Rensei came to him wearing surgical gloves and carrying some sort of scanner with him. He started by running it over the boy's chest, then down to his abdomen. The doctor then asked him to turn round, and proceeded to scan his back, stopping when he reached Sid's spine.  
  
"What I have in mind is that you get a NAVI that will connect directly to your neural system. So... do you have any sort of neurological problem?"  
  
"No neuro problems. But a NAVI that goes straight to the neurons runs the risk of brain hacking. One that doesn't hook up to the nerves, only running off my" ,and there a perceptive person could catch that Sid did not seem to like referring to himself, "body heat'd be much better."  
  
"Yes, there IS a small risk of brain hacking... well, I'll do as it pleases you. But, this isn't something I can do by myself, let alone do it right now. You'll have to set an appointment, maybe next week. Come here." he gave Sid his shirt and jacket and waited for him to put them on before leading him back to the tattooing studio.  
  
"Is next Wednesday optimal?" He said. He added The Doctor to his mental list of minimally trustworthy people.  
  
"Next Wednesday... let me see..." Rensei checked his appointments for the following week. "Is ten PM good for you?"  
  
"Hai. One last thing... can you have a catalogue of your more common weapons implants ready by then?"  
  
Rensei knew what not to ask, and "why do you need such a thing" was a good example. "My less uncommon you mean, right?" he asked grinning. "Yes, I can have it ready. We'll discuss about payment later."  
  
"Arigatou Doctor." He said with another bow, before exiting into the busy Tokyo streets.  
  
***  
  
Eiri looked down at her hands on the steering wheel as she drove off.  
  
"I'm so sorry, Kojirou..." she whispered to her hands.  
  
It had all been an act. She had to leave; there was something she was aching to do, something that she knew that he would stop if he had the power. She knew that Kojirou would hurt himself because of her act, but only in her own house, with Yi-Xue and Noah sleeping, could she do what she was dying to do. Caressing her stomach lightly, Eiri looked down with tear- clouded eyes.  
  
"I'm sorry... that you never had a chance to see Tokyo."  
  
She looked around at the bright lights that she had encountered hours before, but there were now considerably less Harajuku-types and now the sidewalks were beginning to show signs of the business life. Minutes later, she arrived at home, parked the car, and headed to the kitchen.  
  
Noah awoke a bit past dawn to see that Eiri was no longer in bed with him. He assumed that she was preparing breakfast and headed to the kitchen to see what they would be having. As he entered and over at the counter, he didn't see Eiri, but rather the handles of at least twenty knives sticking out of the countertop. He took one step forward... and was able to see that there was a crimson liquid running down the blades. He ran around the counter and saw Eiri.  
  
She was sitting in pool of her own blood.  
  
The blood was coming from deep, self-inflicted cuts all over her arms, legs, and torso. As he walked around, she was slicing her right wrist. She looked up at him with a sadistic look on her face.  
  
"Is this worthy of mention, Dr. Bradford?" she hissed as she cut her left wrist swiftly and without as much as a wince, reopening the old scar.  
  
Noah's lips moved, but no sound came out. She smiled at him as blood ran down her face from a cut on her upper forehead.  
  
"Oh... I have a question for you, doctor! If my heart..." she pointed to her chest. "...is ruthlessly stabbed twice, does it still bleed?" she waited for a few seconds for an answer from him. When Noah started coming closer, her voice became shrill. "Let us find out!"  
  
A psychotic grin on her face, she clasped the knife that she had used on her wrists in her blood-stained hands and held it in front of her. Suddenly, she started plunging it towards her left breast. It had slightly pierced her skin when Noah jumped and pulled the knife out of her hand. He grabbed her and held her lightly so that he wouldn't hurt her further. Yi- Xue entered moments later, and after the uttering of various obscenities, she left the room as quickly as she had arrived, heading to the phone to call the paramedics. Neither of them noticed her.  
  
"Look at my beautiful art..." she giggled insanely. "Kojirou would love it..." she whispered.  
  
He held her closer, tears gathering in his eyes, then whispered in her ear, rocking her as he spoke.  
  
"I didn't mean to hurt you... you have to understand... we met because of deception... but when I saw you... you are so beautiful... and you spoke to me, your voice so soft and soprano-like... you opened your soul to me, and I loved you for your soul. Nothing mattered to me anymore. I broke proper conduct and morals to be with you. I risked everything to make you mine. I love you, Eiri... please... don't you love me too?"  
  
Eiri numbly felt his tears as they ran down her face. She closed her eyes as he ran his fingers idly through her blood-matted hair. He could feel her body relax in his arms and the stickiness of her blood as it soaked through his shirt. Her breathing was labored now and her face was becoming paler as her madness diminished. She pressed her face against his shoulder and her lips parted, as if she was going to speak. Her head fell back into the crook of his arm. She became limp and lifeless.  
  
*** 


	19. Layer 19 : Imbibe

Rensei had been working for a long time now... fixing up people and  
  
adding his art to their bodies. But he felt he was about to come across  
  
something different when that tanned kid crossed the studio's door. He had a determined look in his eyes. The doctor looked at him for a short while, trying to guess what he was up to. Without getting to a conclusion, he smiled and asked.  
  
"Yes, can I help you, young man?"  
  
Sid bowed, unconsciously a martial artists bow, with one hand covering a  
  
fist, held at chest level. He spoke in his still fairly new Japanese.  
  
"Greetings. Have come to inquire about having some *special*, *custom* work done." He said, putting as much innuendo into his flat, angry sounding voice as he could.  
  
Doctor Rensei scratched his long beard and bowed back. "How you got to  
  
know about it?"  
  
"Contacts." He said simply, not wishing to give too much away. "People who prefer to remain anonymous." He added. "And some former patients of  
  
yours..." He finished.  
  
"That's good enough for me." Rensei went to get the "closed" sign for the studio. After he had the doors closed, he led Sid to the back of it, and opening a secret passage on a wall, indicated him the way down an unexpected clean corridor. "Come in... we can talk in privacy there."  
  
Sid let his eyes rove over the entranceway. Finding no hidden traps, he  
  
stepped in, making sure to keep one hand on the switchblade he kept in his pocket. The doctor appeared nice enough, but Sid knew from experience that it was always best to be cautious. After a short walk, the two arrived at their destination, a large, well lit room packed with medical instruments and electronic parts. Still, it wasn't messy. Everything was perfectly set in order. The doctor got chairs for both of them.  
  
"Now, what exactly do you have in mind?"  
  
"That depends on what's medically feasible. First, can you implant this?" He replied, pulling something small and electronic from his pocket. The tiny NAVI was a model of engineering. Folded up, it encompassed only half his palm. Sid unfolded it to reveal an lcd screen, and a miniature keyboard, with keys so small they had to be press with toothpicks. An eraserhead that could be pressed to click it sat in the middle of the keys. Sid held it up for Rensei to see.  
  
"Ah, cybernetics... now I see." He looked curiously at the small jewel.  
  
Even in his experience, he had never seen anything like that. "You made this yourself?"  
  
Sid decided to go out on a limb. "Stole it, actually." Sid said deciding  
  
to trust the doctor. Tachibana had been dumping its industrial byproducts in the river that ran parallel to his old neighborhood. Sid felt no sense of duty to them. "Must be somewhere discreet, preferably the chest or upper thigh, and it must not cause ill effects when struck or submerged. Can you do that?" Sid said.  
  
"No, kid, I can do better than that." the old man answered. "And if you  
  
know where to get good gadgets like this one I don't think you'll have to worry about paying."  
  
"Arigato gozaimasu, Doctor, but this wasn't gotten at the consent of its  
  
owner. But if you don't mind acquiring your stuff that way we can surely  
  
work something out." He said. Sid wondered if the doctor sympathized with the resistance.  
  
"Hm..." the doctor grinned. "That sounds good. But first and foremost  
  
let's have a look at your body. We need to know if it can handle what I have in mind."  
  
Sid considered that for a moment. Stripping in front of a stranger (or  
  
anyone else for that matter) was new to him. "Hai. What needs to be taken off?" He said.  
  
"Just take off your shirt and lie down there," he gestured towards an  
  
operating table. "I'll take care of the rest."  
  
Sid did as told, tossing his shirt and jacket somewhere he could see if  
  
the doctor made a grab for them. Shirtless on the operating table, he  
  
mentally catalogued all the equipment, while he waited for the doctor.  
  
Rensei came to him wearing surgical gloves and carrying some sort of  
  
scanner with him. He started by running it over the boy's chest, then down to his abdomen. The doctor then asked him to turn round, and proceeded to scan his back, stopping when he reached Sid's spine.  
  
"What I have in mind is that you get a NAVI that will connect directly to your neural system. So... do you have any sort of neurological problem?"  
  
"No neuro problems. But a NAVI that goes straight to the neurons runs the risk of brain hacking. One that doesn't hook up to the nerves, only running off my" ,and there a perceptive person could catch that Sid did not seem to like referring to himself, "body heat'd be much better."  
  
"Yes, there IS a small risk of brain hacking... well, I'll do as it  
  
pleases you. But, this isn't something I can do by myself, let alone do it right now. You'll have to set an appointment, maybe next week. Come here." mhe gave Sid his shirt and jacket and waited for him to put them on before leading him back to the tattooing studio.  
  
"Is next Wednesday optimal?" He said. He added The Doctor to his mental  
  
list of minimally trustworthy people.  
  
"Next Wednesday... let me see..." Rensei checked his appointments for the following week. "Is ten PM good for you?"  
  
"Hai. One last thing... can you have a catalogue of your more common  
  
weapons implants ready by then?"  
  
Rensei knew what not to ask, and "why do you need such a thing" was a good example. "My less uncommon you mean, right?" he asked grinning. "Yes, I can have it ready. We'll discuss about payment later."  
  
"Arigatou Doctor." He said with another bow, before exiting into the busy Tokyo streets.  
  
___________  
  
For a moment, he held his breath until he saw her chest rise and  
  
fall: proof of life. There were loud noises in the entry hall and  
  
Noah heard Yi-Xue's voice speaking quickly to the medics. They came  
  
in, seemingly unfazed by the scene. Everything became a blur to Noah  
  
as the medics bandaged her cuts and put her on the stretcher to take  
  
her to the hospital.  
  
Years later, if you asked Dr. Noah Bradford, perhaps while he was  
  
watching his young wife play with their three children at Ueno Park,  
  
what had happened within the next few hours, he wouldn't be able to  
  
tell you anything. Like a bad night of drinking, he had no  
  
recollection of the events that transpired. The only things that he  
  
would know would be Yi-Xue ordering him to go with Eiri, the almost  
  
blue colour that Eiri's face had turned as her heart kept trying to  
  
stop on the short drive to the hospital, the slight prick at the  
  
hospital as they started a blood transfusion between himself and  
  
Eiri, filling her body with life-giving fluid of which they both  
  
shared a type.  
  
Yi-Xue came in a few hours later holding the large vase of black  
  
roses from Kojirou. She set them on the table next to Eiri's bedside  
  
then walked over to Noah, who sat in a chair next to the window,  
  
staring blankly out across the Tokyo landscape. He had changed  
  
sometime in the previous hours from his blood-soaked pyjamas into a  
  
professional suit that he must have kept in his office in the  
  
hospital. The coat for it was cast on the floor. Yi-Xue pulled a  
  
chair up next to him and sat.  
  
"Eiri will be fine, Noah. You need not worry," she said softly.  
  
One of his hands was over his mouth and he kept his stare  
  
constant. "I've lost one wife and child already; I don't want to lose  
  
Eiri and our child also."  
  
Yi-Xue looked over at him then followed his eyes out to the  
  
landscape. It was beginning to mist outside, casting a dark hue  
  
across the city at mid-day. The rain grew progressively stronger, and  
  
soon thunder resounded through the hospital. Yi-Xue closed her eyes  
  
and listened to the steady pounding of the raindrops on the window.  
  
"Have you told Eiri's friend Kojirou yet?" Noah said suddenly.  
  
"No... I figured that you might talk to him. I'm sure he knows you  
  
better than he knows me."  
  
He picked up his coat. "I'll go see him now..."  
  
Noah stood and walked away, putting on his coat as he went over to  
  
Eiri's bed. After kissing her pale face, he left the room and stood  
  
in the hallway for a few moments before leaving and heading to his  
  
car. By the time he reached the car, he was soaking wet, but he  
  
didn't care. He arrived at the Mansion in a few minutes. He got out  
  
of the vehicle and went up to the gate. Surprised to find it open, he  
  
walked up to the door and rang the bell. Within moments, he was  
  
greeted by Nakita's girlfriend.  
  
"Hime... is Kojirou here? Eiri's in the hospital and I thought he  
  
might want to come see her," Adam murmured.  
  
Since he was... around .... Nakita heard the doorbell and went to  
  
investigate. He moved fast enough that he could clearly hear what  
  
Noah had murmured...  
  
When he arrived at the front door, he had no need to look around  
  
Hime - although not a brick shithouse like either of his younger  
  
brothers, he wasn't vertically challenged.  
  
"Hate to be so blunt, but what put her there and why?"  
  
If there was a list of things that Noah didn't want to happen right  
  
then, number one on that list was to see his psychology superior  
  
after he had just committed a vile offense in the world of  
  
psychology.  
  
"Ah, Nakita..." Noah said, then stood in silence for a moment before  
  
speaking again. "There is something that I was recently told to not  
  
tell Eiri. I'm sure that you know this...?"  
  
Just one look at Nakita and even Hime told Noah that they knew.  
  
"I told her... and she seemed so non-chalant about it... but this  
  
morning, she cut herself with every knife in the kitchen. She had  
  
severe blood loss and was taken to the hospital... they don't know  
  
when she'll be released and whether they'll be able to release her  
  
into public for an extended time after she's well..." Noah looked  
  
slightly to the side to hide the tear-filled glimmer of his  
  
eyes. "But... I know how close Kojirou is to Eiri... so..."  
  
"Ah shit...."  
  
Nakita dropped into the detailed thought of a good physician, much  
  
like the fictional Doc Ferrel in the short story, 'Nerves'.  
  
"So your innocent comment turned her world upside down.... not  
  
good.... well... at the moment, the best thing I can suggest is come  
  
inside and we'll get plastered together."  
  
"As much as I'd like to say that's a good idea, Nakita... I'd rather call Kojirou and we all go to the hospital, how's that?" not waiting for an answer, Hime went to call her brother.  
  
A crystal-shattering scream stopped her. It took not more than half a  
  
second for the princess to recover, after which she rushed into Kojirou's bedroom.  
  
Noah stared after Hime for a moment before focusing his attention on  
  
Nakita once more. As a sign to him, he held his hand up to his mouth  
  
and tipped it as though he had a glass.  
  
"Something strong, right now, before she gets back," Noah said. He  
  
worried about Kojirou, but at that moment nothing could appease him  
  
more than a really strong drink...  
  
---  
  
To be seen were small and moderately plump hands clenching an engine-red pillow on a rather warm summer morning. The hands belonged to a somewhat plain girl, though obvious mixed heritage gave off a somewhat exotic effect.  
  
Said girl lie there a while, staring above at an off white ceiling, much like herself...being slightly "off", in terms of sanity of course, and rather pale. Raising a tolerably fleshy arm, she admired her very own set of Barbie-pink nails, which like little candies in appearance had missing chunks and jagged edges as if they'd been thrown into a pit of starving Ethiopian children...Or a starving pit of children from any country, for that matter. Was Ethiopia a country? Not that it mattered.  
  
Dismissing her current thoughts on said supposed third world countries, she hoisted herself off the bed, automatically slipping matching Barbie toes into a rather faded and worn two-some that could have possibly once been a bright new pair of green Converse-like sneakers. Brands names really didn't mean much.  
  
Trudging down a few stepping stairs, she made her way into what seemed to be a kitchen. There was a sink. There were shapes that resembled dishes and there was a bowl of noodles that didn't look...too bad.  
  
Clad in her daringly left untied, green, no-name sneakers; Bikini underwear stamped with pink palm trees; and a white boy's t-shirt, she slipped her behind upon a rather low countertop and consumed said noodles. They couldn't be more than a few days old.        
  
When said noodles were gone, she slithered off the counter and located a pair of denim shorts that had been carelessly left on the floor...next to a certain set of unmentionables, one seeming to belong to a product of a male species, she slipped into the above mentioned article which were so eye- catchingly short, it is likely that they didn't deserve the "O", the "R", or the "T".  
  
As she was headed out the door she spotted a rather tasty looking gumball lying on what could have been a coffee table. It was green and shiny, with a picture the average Japanese fan girl's dreamboat pop-star kind of guy printed on what could have been its front. Consuming the glossy sphere without even a glance at Mr. Perfect Pop Star, she exited the vermin- infested hellhole that she loved to call her home. And no, that's not referring to rodents.  
  
---  
  
After Nakita returned with four bottles of vodka...  
  
"120 proof vodka enough? You look an emotional wreck... not surprising considering your involvement has progressed past the physical."  
  
Nakita opened one bottle and gave it to Adam/Noah.  
  
"Drink up."  
  
Nakita was too busy drinking to notice the twin ghostly forms, both  
  
identical to him .... existing .... behind him, perpetual sorrow  
  
locked into their faces. As for Adam/Noah, however....  
  
Noah had only had a swig or two of the vodka, but as he looked up to talk to Nakita, he had the sudden belief that he had already had too much.  
  
"Fuck, I thought I could stand more liquor than this," he said, emphasizing his point by shaking the bottle. "But just a bit and I'm already seeing triple..."  
  
He closed his eyes for a moment and then reopened them to still see the Nakita three. He narrowed his eyes.  
  
"Nakita... those aren't exact copies of you," he said, noticing the bottle in the real Nakita's hand. "Turn around."  
  
After letting the smartass comment "I'll drink to that" escape,  
  
Nakita turned the beat around.... and sprayed approximately 75 ml of  
  
good vodka into an atomised mist.  
  
Turning back to Noah, "Well.. I better fill you in.... I'm the third  
  
of ten children.... two sisters older than me who I've never met,  
  
then I'm one of a set of identical triplets, then two single births,  
  
one male, one female, then we have the second set of identical  
  
triplets, Tak, Kannai et al."  
  
/ Strange... why did I react so casually? /  
  
The same thought went through Noah's mind.  
  
"So... this is... normal for you?" he said, then took another swig of the vodka.  
  
---  
  
Her feet rested upon the innermore side of her faded canvas sneakers as she lolled along, following a steep cement curb. The people working in their gardens or retrieving their mail opposite side of the curb would often turn their heads upon the obtrusive sound she made as she chaffed the rubber bottoms by grazing harsh cement with most untidy footwear.  
  
      Raising a bit of her shirt, patting brow and neck to rid herself of a most unfavorable body secretion such as sweat, as if any other bodily secretions were in fact, favorable, she passed a young boy, who in the age of erector sets, held no real interest in anything but. She flashed a rather Cheshire grin at him as she passed and flicking a bottle cap, he as her target.  
  
Right between the eyes, she thought. The grin became most tenacious when she heard the effects of her most ignoble actions in the form of a child's snivel and bawl.  
  
        After approaching a most shady apartment building, she dallied her way up a flight of awfully rusty stairs and to a door of which she didn't bother to knock, just turned a squeaking handle and pushed open the squeaking door. Maintenance mustn't be too good here.  
  
        Eyeing some dirty manga casually lying upon a handicapped coffee table, she picked one up and began to.."read".  She giggled like a school girl, most fittingly, as she learned of the outlandish theme of the book. Those kooky hentai always brought a smile to her face.  
  
        Sprawling out upon the couch, she admired the candy nails once more, lazily turning her head as someone else entered the den.  
  
        He was rather tall. Looking mid-to late-life. Ranging from 30-45. Gray hair already taking black on top of a round head.  Dressed like that of a sad and disheveled bank-teller. Fleshy, drooping cheeks and baggy eyes told the story of a marriage as grey as the hairs on his head. Though the eyes seemed to relate more to the boy of erector sets with a love for his mother. A certain pitiful slant.  
  
        She smirked, her eyes rolled round and she let out a sort of huff. The huff led to a word, the first you've heard from her, If my memory serves me right.  "Keisuke," she sighed in a most agitated tone.    
  
        His mouth formed a sort of pout and he began towards her, he kicked the heavy door with his foot. You see his plump self slink up upon the couch, or you would, if the door hadn't been slammed in your face.  
  
---  
  
Hime returned a short while later, Kojirou on her left side. When he saw  
  
the three Nakitas, Kojirou raised his eyebrow, an inquiring look on his  
  
face. Hime settled for a wide grin. After a short silence Kojirou scratched his eyes, "Is there something I missed?"  
  
Tak chose that time to join the assembly... seeing the older set of  
  
triplets in his family reunited for the first time since their  
  
birth...  
  
/ Everybody needs to believe in something... I believe I will scull  
  
two bottles of vodka... /  
  
Without further ado, the green-haired giant grabbed the two unopened  
  
vodka bottles and emptied them. 


End file.
